MUSIC preview
ROCK/POP Eels Glasgow: Concert Hall, Fri 21 Jul.
If you believed all the press surrounding the release of the third Eels album, Daisies Of The Galaxy, you’d be forgiven for thinking that E, the main Eelster, had all of a sudden got over his deep depression and family traumas, and was cheerfully skipping through the fields, waving at bunny rabbits and bluebirds and whistling a merry tune.
In reality, although Daisies Of The Galaxy is considerably more upbeat than its bleak predecessor Electro Shock Blues, it's not exactly Julie Andrews territory. With song titles ranging from 'l Like Birds’ to ’lt's A Motherfucker', it’s a truly schizophrenic record; sometimes desolate, often heart-warming, but always touching.
And as such, it perfectly reflects the character of its creator, the enigma that is E. So, Mr E, are you a happy camper now? ’l’m trying,’ he says with an audible sigh, ’l’m definitely trying. At least now I have a choice about it, you know?’
True to previous form the first single from the album, the superbly groovesome 'Mr E’s Beautiful Blues', is shoved away as a hidden track at the end of the record, and E didn’t even want it there. ’I wanted the album to
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The (hard) workers unite: Ceolbeg
E's are good: Eels
come out last year, you know, back in the 19005,’ he says, 'but the record company can never put out anything quickly. So I sat around for several months writing and recording other stuff, and they heard that song and said: "You have to put this on the record". Because I've got a reputation for being difficult I felt like I needed to throw them a bone or something, so I stuck it on at the end of the album.‘
Then the record company released it as a single and it went top ten, which led to the somewhat bizarre sight of Eels performing on the Lottery Show. 'That was really fun,’ says E. 'We were told it was that kind of tacky show, so I said: "Can I get a gold suit and a cigar?", and they had a fruit basket backstage so I stuffed a pear down my pants. I asked the record company woman to give me some money so I could have it sticking out my pocket and look like a rich Lottery winner guy, so she went and took out £240 which I ended up throwing into the audience. She was a little upset about that.’
With E and his motley crew about to grace the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, reports from the States suggest the live Eels show contains much instrument swapping, sarcastic humour and fancy dress. E's remaining tight-lipped, however, about what to expect. ’lt's a concert for the grown-up in all of us,’ he deadpans, ’only it’s a lot more fun than a grown-up's concert.’ (Doug Johnstone)
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to restore to his rightful place the poet who inspired Burns', according to Paterson It is an hour-long celebration of Robert Fergusson's 18th century poetry and related music and song, and Will be performed by Billy Kay and the Bairns, while the eponymous album is re-released on CD
Also making Paterson's vorce laser- readable, Up to Date brings two of his preVious solo albums (Two Hats and Sin/ling War/ed Goodbye) in to the digital age and together on one CD, now released on Gi‘eentrax
Ceolbeg
Edinburgh: Dynamic Earth, Wed 2 Aug. Kicking off this year's Festival Fringe folkery, Ceolbeg play the first concert at Dynamic Earth, Scottish Internationals replacement for the late, lamented Grouse House It's the one gig of the Festival for Ceolbeg, and their busy vocalist Rod Paterson finds the prospect 'guite exc itingI It's as if it's the Ceolbeg album launch in Scotland, as it's the first time we've played here since Cairn Water was released '
They did recently perform a lot of their new music at a \.veei<end festival
62 THE LIST )0 Jul .3 m; 2000
in sunny Opor‘tc) where, \Vllll tip-tempo electro harp, pipes and 'new boy' Mike ll‘erlS on drums and percussion, the hand went down a storm
No stranger to recording, Paterson has Just re-emergecl from the studio With Jock Tamson's Baiins, the seminal Scots band he co-founded in 'ate—/O's Edinburgh The new album, \et to be mixed, is due for release later in the year, but the band play two nights during the Festival, first at Dynamic Earth, and later With l:(l\.‘/lll Morgan and Kathleen Jamie, as part of the Book l‘(‘$llV<lllS lergussori Supper As part of the event, l7e/gussori’s Air/cl Reel/e, 'A labour of love, an attempt
Paterson is positively clervrsh like over the next few Weeks with gigs at the International Festival With their Work, Sex And Drink, series, solo at Edinburgh's Royal Oak Festival series, for three consec utive nights and even if you can't manage to get off the couch you can catch him soon on two Norther/i Nights TV (]l()8, being broadcast midweek on SlV A band With a work ethic to admire
lock Tarnsori’s Barr/is, [)yriarnic [fart/i, FM 18 Aug, Work, Sex and [)r'irilc, Edinburgh International lest/val, Fri Sep 1, Fergusso/i Supper, Sat .26 Aug, Rocl Paterson Solo, Royal Oak, lire .22 Thu 2/1 Aug
FESTIVAL JAZZ Kenny Werner Trio
Edinburgh: La Belle Angele, Sun 30 Ju|;The Hub, Sun 30 Jul.
Kenny Werner is one of those musicians who has crept into the consciousness of the wrder JrlZ/ public over a period of decades, rather than making an immediate splash. Werner has gone for the long haul, building an impressive roster of associations, a strong discography, and evolvrng an unusually explicit holistic approach to the spiritual and creative aspects of his musrc.
That approach is set out in practical detail for musicians in his book Effortless Mastery. It is a seductive title, but Werner's own career immediater brushes aside any suggestion of an easy answer Within its cover. Instead, it presents what the pianist sees as a genurne illumination of the higher spiritual purpose of all that hard work to develop musical skills.
'I want to move beyond entertainment and art to serve my audience as a pure vessel for light and inspiration.’ says Werner, ’I get a lot of responses from people ab0ut the effect the book is haying on them, and lam a bit humbled by these responses. It not only challenges those musicians to change, it challenges me to be a worthy vessel for this message ’
In addition to his trio concert at La Belle Angele, Werner Will present the ideas he explores in Effortless Mastery at a clinic-cum-cgoncert at The Hub. His own dynamic and exploratory music provrdes a c‘onvrncing starting pornt, whether the listener’s interest lies in exploring his search for a higher meaning, or Just in hearing some highly inventive and original ia77. For Werner, though, those two options are one
’I believe it is time for musicians to abandon their limited concepts of what music is and Who they are. Historically, musicians have been at the forefront of cultural and spiritual revolutions It's time for us to drop our petty concerns of What is and isn't iaxx and serve the music's original purposes, which is to express the inexpressible, to unite and expand all people in light and love, and to express and induce a state of ecstasy, which is our birthright' (Kenny lvlathiesoni
The philisophical tones of Kenny Werner