I'm going to to NY Philharmonic's Biennial next week; if any of you guys are in NYC you should definitely go!  Its going to be amazing. 

Swans live at the  Electric Brixton Tuesday 27th May. Jenny Eval supporting.

Well, first off, thank god for custom ear-plugs with 15db attenuation. It was loud for me, I didn’t realise how loud it was until the guy next to me was occasionally wincing in pain and putting his fingers in his ears.

 I know some bang on about recreating the live experience…really? Listening to off-axis sound with rattling pa’s, whilst sucking up someone’s cigarette smoke in a no-smoking venue. Then being jostled from behind by the same guys over and over going off to the lav, either due to a weak bladder or a bad charlie habit.

I digress from these minor irritations. Swans, I can joyfully tick you off my bucket list.
Michael Gira was very much the captain of the performance and he ran a tight ship. With six musicians all going for it on stage, much can go awry. For those who noticed would see Mr Gira catching the attention of the band, signalling to change their performance and either reining them in or getting them to let rip.

That attention to detail meant that their trademark long intros and songs didn’t meander and lose their intensity. They managed to pull off a sound which was both a wild cacophony and a tight groove.

I suppose I should mention the support, Jenny Eval. If her drummer hadn’t lost the locking nuts for both his crash cymbal and high-hat, which both unsurprisingly fell off during the performance I may have paid more attention.

Not my photo, but pretty much how I saw them.


Greg Cristman

I'm not sure I would have expected Swans to be so loud!  Did the venue size play into it? 

It really seems like everyone is overdoing it these days with volume.  I mean, I expect it from the heavy guys, but others are surprising me.  Other than Van Morrison, the only rock show I've seen in a while that had decent sound was Pixies.  Actually, it was really good.  They seem to care how they sound live.


Sounds like it was a great show! 

Yeah, it was a great show. You must forgive an old curmudgeon who has been spoilt on half-decent fidelity and a comfy sofa.

I was up in the circle (standing) section. So one would think there would be a db drop-off. I hadn't been to the Electric before, it's at least half the size of the Ace. If I didn't have the custom plugs I would have definitely left or retreated to the bar.

The thing that gets me are the sound guys. A level check has been done, it should be set it and forget it. So why were they coming back, running around re-patching shit just before the headliner. I've played in crappier venues where you're playing back to back with four other acts. There's really no excuse.

Am I going to blame the mp3 generation audience who wouldn't know what a properly amplified Fender Telecaster sounds like, or a sabian cymbal, who put up with this crap? No, 'cause I'm not doing anything about it either except going out less and moaning on a forum.

I don't know. A lot of bands earn their keep from live gigs. Maybe we should be demanding more?

So, like a moth returning to the flame I have tickets for this...



It will be my birthday two days afterwards. How could I resist? 

NEED TO SEE THEM LIVE AT LEAST ONCE IN MY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!

This. If I don't do this now I would regret it.