Music
a. i“ '9’ 9 m’ . #1. ‘ Iv. iyr” 3,4557. J. . ... _:._. 3-; "‘-’ ,“x. A. [a at”: -. a 7 I a - ..."-. it. .r. J.‘ v":x§'{~‘--~‘; .r: .. ' , _ . " n: 4'- w,‘ M, i . . ,. ... ‘3 - \ ‘ u; o .s ~1 i . _' ~ -- 'm' .‘H'a" tic-Escwvzw '3 new -. .» wire“: *3?“ ‘ : "4- v. yif‘ms Trio AAB clearly misjudge the incoming tide JAZZ FOLK
DOUBLE HELIX Tolbooth, Stirling, Mon 24 Feb; Queen's Hall. Edinburgh, Wed 26 Feb; Arches, Glasgow, Thu 27 Feb
Trio AAB join forces with flautist Brian Finnegan (best known for his partnership with Sarah Allen in the twin-flute front line of Flook!) in a jazz-meets-folk double-bill for the Contemporary Music Network. CMN tours rarely cross the border. but Double Helix will visit Aberdeen and Lerwick in addition to the central belt dates listed above.
The augmented AAB line-up will share the programme with Northern Lights, 3 fine band co-Ied by trombonist Annie Whitehead and Tyneside concertina player Alastair Anderson (the line-up includes fiddler Chris Stout of Fiddlers Bid, who is also a member of AAB guitarist Kevin MacKenzie’s Vital Signs band).
Trio AAB will issue their third album for the occasion, which also features Brian Finnegan on several tracks. The disc is called Strange Things Happen at C, and will appear on drummer Tom Bancroft’s Caber Music label. Saxophonist Phil Bancroft, the third member of the trio, explained how they approached the collaboration.
‘It worked out really well. Brian is from the folk tradition, but he’s a very original player. He has an incredible sound on the instrument. Although he’s never done anything quite like this, he is a natural improviser, and is comfortable working with traditional tunes, but also with taking them out.
‘That is one of the interesting things about the way we work with folk musicians, that whole idea of taking them out of the forms they know, and also of deconstructing the forms.
‘There are a lot of things coming together in this project. We have all been involved in folk music in some way, but there is a lot of jazz-folk fusion where the tune just gets played at the beginning and the end, and the improvising goes on in the middle. We didn't really want to do that, and Brian is very open to trying things.’ (Kenny Mathieson)
ROCK
THE YEAH YEAH YEAHS
QMU, Glasgow, Mon 24 Feb
'Sex! And Violence. And living in the moment.‘ That '5 how the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' vivacious frontwoman Karen 0 describes her own Warholian wet dream of a band's particular rock'n'roll ethos in one bite-Size nugget. And it's not easy to argue. given that they blaze SUCh a preci3ion- point trail between the worlds of sleazy. rock-club. ‘why don't we do it in the road?‘ hormonality and glamorous. gIOSSy art school cool. Already. the style mags and music press have fallen before the YYYs (and O in partiCuIar, let's face it). and it can't be long before the rest of the western world follows Suit.
‘We were really familiar with the local rock scene. and we were. like. bored with it. and th0ught we did that on an international scale. land. In the meantime. head along c0uld shake things up a bit'. says and the forthcoming album Fever to the OM for some of that sex the chatty and personable Karen. to Tell. which should fly over high and Violence in person.
Cue last year's debut EP. which street counters up and down the (David Pollock)
Warholian wet dreams
48 THE LIST 13—27 Feb 2003
til Assltm
ROYAL SCOTTTISH NATIONAL ORCHESTRA Usher Hall. Edinburgh. Fri 21 Feb: Royal Concert Hall. Glasgow, Sat 22 Feb
Most recently iii the lll'it‘lllJIitillJl lllllt}l|(]lll tor his store tor Ba: Luhrmann's lh‘uii’ li‘tiutio. Srottrsh (7t)lll()t)t$t2l (Ziaiti Armstrong; .-.on BAP l/\ and l\.or Noxello Awartlz; for his musit: for the same «liret‘tor'r; Romeo and Jti/it’f. lollowul in picking; up an ASCAP awaitl tor Hit‘ Bone Col/Mii‘oi for Universal lhir; time. it's the HSNOE; turn to tiet a crack of the VJllljl in Anustroiiti‘s (l()lllllll88l()lllllg} queue lhm, premiere hit; e\.«ot:ati\ely Illltftl Norther/i Sou/id. Islands alongside Brahms" Vio/iii (;()llift,‘I!() alltl Dvorak's Siiiip/ioiii no :5. While the latter two are understandath familiar through countless performances and lt.‘(it)l(llll(_]t§, there may. more surprisingly. he echoes of familiarity to the new [)ltftitl. 'It is an extension of my recent orchestral work. which takes; landscape as the initial stimulus for llllltSKIill composrtion' explains Armstrong.
3
l’ .le
Craig Armstrong enjoys the island life
In common wrth his orchestral commission for the reopening of Edinburgh's Usher Hall » W/ieii Morning Turns to Light it is light and colour which feature strongly as SOurces of inspiration. lhe Ariierican abstract expressionist. Mark Rothko. whose influence on contemporary banners; is seen through his use of large. luminous fields of colour, is another inspiration. So too is the American artist Jon Schueler, who worked directly on Scottish islands. draWing from the constant changes Ill light. weather and sky.
MuSical influences have come from the orchestral works of Ravel and Debussy. ‘Their use of orchestral colour and instrumental ensembles has always been an inspiration'. says Armstrong, who links their tradition to 'several modern mu3ic traditions both electronic and acoustic."
(Carol Main)