resisted the cap1ta11st mre or
the big time-they even tolres stretched only to half- pect. Leonard Cohen did all almost anything on his horn.
refused the opening slot on a-dozen Neil Young songs, a of those things and more: he Now if only he could find a
the Who's last blitz ol Beatles ballad or two, and won our hearts. We signalled way to put more warmth into
America.
"Suzanne" had made me his victory with standing his playing he would fully
Not only is the controver­ cynical. I took my deepovations; he paid us back deserve his poll-winning
sial ban.ct light years ahead of voiced broodings from John generously, with three en- status.
most of their rivals ideologic­ Cale and Richard Thompson cores. Everyone-star, band,
The Time Flies series ·conally, but musically they are and left Leonard Cohen for listeners-left with a glow.
tlnues on at the Vancouver
; also far superior as musi­ the more bohemian of my
Thirty years a Canadian East Cultural Centre with
cians to most of rock's parents' friends, with their and never a fan of Leonard piano virtuosos Paul Plimley
posers. While their sound Is berets and Peter, Paul, and
(solo) and Jean Beaudet
Cohen's? I am one now.
mostly dictated by the hard­ Mary albums.
(with a hot quartet) on
Alex Varty
driving guitar work of Jim
Thursday (November 3). ExBoy, was I dumb!
Moglne and Martin Rotsy
pressive avant-gardists Unimet
I
Leonard
finally
�
IA
S-itlli&lif
J ov1t
and the relentless drumming
ty and the Tom Cora/Hans
music
Cohen's
face-toce
at
fa
Michael Breck�r
of Rob Hirst, It's their puzzl­
Reichel duo perform Friday
ing time changes, Intricate the Queen Elizabeth Theatre
(November 4). and the wonlast
week
In
the
form
of
a
Band
chord structures, intelligent
de r f u l p i a n i s t Ma r i l y n
concert
that
was
as
moving,
.lyrics, and sweet harmonies
Crispell closes the series,
(by Mogine and Hirst) that amusing. and beautifully
first alone and then with the
presented
as
almost
anyreally set them apart. Then,
R e v · e w : C ;::;.;.:
17-plece New Orchestra
,..
.:.:.:.:.=...:.;-"'
of course. there's the hulking thing else I've encountere,1 ,-:.;,_, ..,1;,:;;,.:a:..:.. .=
N �1;;1,1,:.=:.:::.....:..-1� Workshop ensemble, on Sat..w�
Tuesda1the
In
of
a
world
An
pop.
Garrett, who has to be one of
(November 5). Alex
��i
the most compelling and sin­ solutely flawless back-up
band,
including
the
wonde
cere frontmen working the
fully inventive oud (a string­
stage today.
Vancouver's Lunar Adven­
For those of us who were ed instrument like a lute) of
tures and New York City.
fortunate enough this Hallo­ John · Bilezikjian and the
Sonic Youth
MichaelBreckerBand kicked
ween to come banging on seductive backup vocals of
off the Time Flies mini·
Preview: Town Pump,
Midnight Oil's door. it was all Julie Christensen, provided
festival with two very unlike
treat and no trick. Anthony an endless flow of subtle tex­
Thursday,
Nov e mber I 0
tures, ranging from convinc­
but equally fine sets of jazz,
Peter Brunette
ing electro-pop to appropri­
last Tuesday night. Oddly
Feedback festival arrives,
ately smoky blues stylings,
enough, each band chose to earplugs are optional
behind Cohen's simple yet
open with a Celtic-influenced
Leonard Cohen
absolutely appropriate
original. but from there any True fans of the outer edge of
guitar strummings and key­
similarities were outweighed guitar sonics are in luck.
Review: Q.E. Theatre,
Two of the finest modern ex­
board washes. And for his
by a world of differences.
' Wednesday, October 26
ps1-rt, the maestro sang and
Cramped together on a perim.ental groups are com­
Cohen converts skeptic with spoke to his audience, which small corner of the Com­ ing to the Town Pump:
he had in the palm of his
modore stage, and still unac­ Screaming Trees and Sonic
unparalleled pop
hand from the very begin­
customed to performing for Youth. Both know how to
Thirty years a Canadian and ning, with rare humour,
audiences of more than a few turn feedback and outrage­
1 have never been a fan of humility, and honesty.
score, Lunar Adventures ously sustained chords into
Leonard Cohen's songwrit­
Not many performers can
played to each other, produc­ the kind of primal music that
ing. I had read and admired bare their souls as complete­
ing a warm and unified shoots through you and pins
his prose and poetry, but had ly as Cohen can. Fewer stlll
sound that made up in in­ you to the wall with your
shrugged off his singing as can reveal all of their foibles,
terplay what It might have head twitching In time to the
toneless and uninviting, his eccentricities, Insecurities,
lacked In charisma. All four Inescapable rhythm.
The Screaming Trees, a
music as schmaltz. Too close and Infidelities.· and still
Adventurers are much con•
an acquaintance with too remain worthy of an aud­
cerned with texture, and the band from Washington state,
many folkies whose reper- ience's,. attention and resband used small percussion make-their local debut at this
devices, unconventional in­ show. Fans of the sadly
strumental techniques and defunct Husker Du should
electronics to good effect, like the Trees, because they
colouring a set of strong, have a fine sense of how to
vital melodies that are crying blend noise and distortion In­
out to be burnished up in the to a focused, practically
recording studio and set psychedelic, beam of power.
Sonic Youth Is even more
loose on the marketplace.
Brecker, of course, . has experimental, with several
been a visible commodity for different guitars, each set to
a couple of decades now, and a different unusual tuning.
it shows: he plays a sort of Despite the artiness behind
bebop squared, not just in this quest for unusual varia­
terms of speed-though he's tions of music, they really
·fast-but also In terms of rock, and lately they've
how the rounded edges of the managed to construct their·
jazz Idiom have been pared Innovations Into tunes that
from his music, leaving a are somehow Identifiable as ·
rather hard, geometrical, pop music, In a way that
almost cubistlcally faceted eludes explanation. It almost
core. The difference between shouldn't be possible, but
his sound and Lunar's tones they do it very well.
Is that between a sparkling
Sonic Youth Is also an
diamond and a mossy en­ engrossing live band, ·fasci­
crusted geode: some people nating to watch and at times .
wlll love the fine-cut stone almost poetic to hear. A brief
while others wlll be intrigued demonstration occurred at
by the organic exterior and the Luv-a-falr more than a
he mysterious Interior di- year ago, In a show that was
mensions of the wild rock.
eut short by the early closing
no ffiit
to gueaa hours on Sunday nights.
here my-aim ath!es I ,
:Phat won't happen this time.
but I was lmpressea by the There will be a full evening
strength ofBrecker's band. A of the type of music that
more muscular yet controll- either· sweeps one up into

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