Arts & Entertainment

 

 

Blue Rodeo with
Luke Doucet

Monday, January 14", 2007, Orpheum Theatre

By Karen Russ

Ie rare that I go to a concert excited
about the headlining act and saying
“Gonna get me a T-shirt...!” and instead
leave with 2 albums by the opening band.
Don’t get me wrong—Blue Rodeo can
and did send me into ecstatic raptures, and
I hope I get to see them again (and again,
and again) but I couldn’t help feeling that
where the tickets said “Featuring Special
Guests,” they should
have asked “How did
Neil Young and Johnny
Cash manage to have a
baby together?”

From singer-
songwriter Luke
Doucet’s dark and
purposeful opening
song, “Long Haul
Driver,” I was _ sold.
Like Blue Rodeo,
Doucet definitely has
some country in him,
some bluegrass, some folk and some
rock, but even all four of these categories
don’t seem to do the man justice. His
act consisted mainly of songs from his
newest release, Blood’s Too Rich—an
excellent, albeit subdued album. No
matter; his music and heartfelt lyrics are
equally pleasurable in their mellower
form. One of the final songs in the act
was dedicated to “My second favourite
bassist—from The Band.” The mention
of The Band elicited raucous cheers and
applause (from me). The tempo and feel
of “The Day Rick Danko Died” would
be a recognizable tribute to The Band,
even without mention of Danko’s name.

Doucet has guested on albums
by Sarah McLachlan, Delerium, Captain
Tractor, and several others. He was

also up for a Juno in 2006 for Adult
Alternative Album of the Year, but lost

“They opened
with “Five Days
in May,”—and

the female portion
of the audience
sighed and quivered
appropriately.”

to Neil Young.

Now, onto the main course; at a
Blue Rodeoconcert,oneexpectsmasterful
musicianship, complex and layered
arrangement and lyrics, and several
great songs that would be recognizable
even if one were not a fan. They opened
with “Five Days in May,”—and the
female portion of the audience sighed
and quivered appropriately. Their first
few songs were played
in front of the curtains,
the bassist sitting, the
drummer using only
one drum. After that,
the curtains were raised,
displaying a more
varied arrangement and
infusing both band and
crowd with a little more
energy. Halfway during
the show, Blue Rodeo
brought out Vancouver
rocker Barney Bentall
and played “Come Back to Me” (don’t
be confused if you don’t recognize his
name — it was a while ago...).

Blue Rodeo played some of
their earlier hits, “To Love Somebody,”
“Try,” and “Rose-Coloured Glasses,”
and also showcased some songs from
their most recent album, Small Miracles,
including the energetic “C’mon” and the
very classic rock-y “Black Ribbon.” The
encore included “Hasn’t Hit Me Yet,”
Jim Cuddy’s soulful “After the Rain,”
and then, with Barney Bentall, Luke
Doucet, and Melissa McLelland Doucet
returning to the stage, “Lost Together.”

Never a disappointment, Blue
Rodeo consistently puts on incredibly
solid live shows, and displays an uncanny
astuteness when it comes to selecting
opening acts.

 

 

   

.

Wu-Tang Clan Brings

The Ruckuss

By Liam Britten

Tiere was a lot of hype and
anticipation built up around Wu-Tang’s
latest album 8 Diagrams, which dropped
just over a month ago. And rightly so;
it marked the first full re-assembling of
the group since 2001’s mediocre /ron
Flag, and the first since the death of
the Ol’ Dirty Bastard in 2004. Further
compounding the hype was an endless
stream of tit-for-tat public comments
by group members over the Wu’s
management, how 8 Diagrams was
shaping up, and even the RZA’s actions
personally. Most vocal about the album’s
quality were Raekwon and Ghostface,
with Raekwon claiming that another
Wu album would be released soon after
8 Diagrams- this one without the RZA.
For his part, RZA couldn’t say enough
great things about the album. In an
interview with Allhiphop.com, the RZA
stated, “this is the perfect time for us
to come back; the stars are aligned. It’s
like when we first started... People want
something that gives them an adrenaline
rush. We’re here to supply that fix.”

The truth is a little bit of both
accounts. No, Raekwon, the RZA isn’t
getting you “on some soul brother
number one bullshit,” and no, RZA, this
isn’t 36 Chambers Part II. This album
is not a raw, gritty masterpiece, but it’s
not an R&B sell-out joint either. There’s
plenty of hard-hitting, sparse, paranoid
beats that have been the Wu’s bread
and butter for almost 15 years; “Take
it Back,” for one, combines the best of
Ghostface, Inspectah Deck and U-God
with a bumping RZA beat to create a
track that’s positively claustrophobic.
Furthermore, the MCs assembled here
haven’t sounded so good in years.
Method Man has gotten a spark back
that we haven’t seen since his Redman
collaboration Blackout! But the standout
performance on this album has to be the
GZA’s verse on “Rushing Elephants”-
deep, complex and cerebral as ever:
From darkness to DNA, I move with
my brother / And we resonate, energy
that shifts in colors / Bringing MC’s
punishment, then I’m done with it / The
meter leave way on the fast break, I
run with it / It was not a hobby, but a
childhood passion / That had started
in the lobby and was quickly fashioned
/ Every line to line, bar for bar is

clockwork / Hazardous and powerful
enough to have your block hurt / Check
the total amount of MC’s inflicted / With
torture, from moving with werk that’s
restricted / We criticize producers ‘til
they joints are right / Then acupuncture
the track with pinpoints of light.

Other standout tracks _ include
“Unpredictable,” and “Weak Spot,” both
which will certainly satisfy true fans’
need for real Wu-bangers, minimalist
beats, with menacing, well-crafted
verses from some of the last real MCs
who aren’t making cell phone beats for
mall gangsters. But that said, there’s
also a few serious missteps that deserve
mention. For starters, the single “The
Heart Gently Weeps” is pretty weak.
It really has no place on this album
and stands out like a sore thumb. The
song’s production is professional, but it
feels so out of place on this album, and
Ghostface’s verse is uncharacteristically
mediocre. “Stick Me for My Riches,”
“Gun Will Go” and “Starter” must be
the “soul brother number one bullshit”
Raekwon was complaining about. These
tracks are certainly not what Wu-Tang
has ever been about, and most of the
blame has to go to the RZA and his
radio-friendly, squeaky-clean treatment
of these tracks (though “Gun Will Go”
also suffers from some monumentally
uninspired verses).

So, the verdict? 8 Diagrams is a mixed
bag, but its strengths outnumber its
weaknesses by a long shot, especially
when you keep in mind all that has
happened to the group in the past five
years. Ol’ Dirty’s death, hiatuses, legal
action, Cappadonna going borderline
insane, and group infighting have all
been part of the group’s experiences
since 2003. And this is a group that has
been around for almost 15 years, and
still have maintained a great deal of
credibility. What other living rappers
who were grimy up-and-comers in 1994
have maintained cred like Wu? For a
group of their size that’s been around
for as long as they have, collaborating
infrequently, and experiencing so many
trials along the way, the mere fact that
they are still releasing material as a
group is impressive. The fact that it’s as
good as this is encouraging. Wu-Tang
Clan still ain’t nothin’ to fuck with.