JCW in Cleveland

So, ICP is in Cleveland again tonight, but not for their music. They are hosting a JCW match and I’m not going.

Why, you ask? Well, I’ve never really been a wrestling fan and I’ve never really been interested in watching it. The one exception is when ICP commentated on the Stranglemania videos. Their commentary was hilarious! I love how J and Shaggy can just improvise such crazy shit at random, their rantings never get old or stop being funny. One of the best parts of having Big Money Hustlas on DVD was the commentary J did with Rude Boy and Alex Abbiss.

Even if they were doing a show however, I don’t think I would go. I feel bad for saying it, but I’ve been to so many of their shows and they never really change. Especially now that they haven’t put out any new songs since The Tempest. And the spraying Faygo thing is awesome, but the whole thing of having to remember to bring a towel and drive home soaking wet in the freezing cold (especially when you’re wearing face paint!) isn’t really exciting anymore. I hope that doesn’t make me sound old. I will totally go see them again, I just don’t go every time they’re in town anymore.

The same thing is happening with the Kottonmouth Kings. The last show I went to of their was pretty disappointing. I love their music, but they didn’t even play any of their new material! They just played the same songs they always play. I know there are certain songs that people are expecting to hear and that’s great, but I like to hear some new stuff too. Like ICP, I’ll no doubt go again, just not every time.

Oh well, at least Twiztid manages to keep their shows fresh. I’ll probably go see them at Peabody’s when they come in February.

Peter Gabriel: Growing Up Live

 

I was watching this last night and it inspired me to do a review of it.  This is a DVD presentation of Peter Gabriel’s 2003 Growing Up Tour, filmed in Milan, Italy.  Usually, I am not very enthusiastic about concerts on DVD since they pale to actually being there.  At over 2 hours long however, and with a performance that is just as creative and groundbreaking as his music videos, Growing Up Live is very much a quality title.

I have never seen Peter live and I am extremely disappointed that I missed this show.  It was probably the last tour he’ll ever do.  Those that are lucky enough to have seen him perform know that a Peter Gabriel concert is quite a feast for the eyes and ears.  To start, the stage for this tour is set up on a large circular platform right in the middle of the stadium.  The reason for this is threefold; first, it allows the venue to accommodate more people.  Second, every single one of those people has a full, unobstructed, front line view of the performance.  We all hate being at the very side of a concert not being able to see anything.  Lastly, this forced the production team to be extremely creative in their set design and as a result, they were able to pull off some very cool tricks with the presentation.

The stage crew and equipment are all stored underneath the stage, and we see occasional glimpses of the goings on underneath the platform.  It rotates, allows for objects to be risen up from below, and allows the band and their instruments to be repositioned and moved o the fly to accommodate the needs of each song.  All of the wiring comes up from an opening in the center of the platform, and along with creative lighting and camera movement, this gives the illusion of the musicians having limitless mobility as they dance, walk, and make sure that no member of the audience is felt ignored.  Peter and the rest of the group do an outstanding job of keeping the show lively and interesting.  One of the coolest props includes a huge inflatable ball that Peter climbs inside of and walks around the stage during “Growing Up.”  I won’t spoil the best one, but I’ll give you a hint: he gives the song “Downside Up” quite a literal meaning.

Even the sound is excellent.  I don’t know if this is simply due to the fact that its on DVD, but I can honestly say that this is the only concert I’ve seen where the live songs are actually better than the CD tracks!  Quite a few of the songs are performed with a more upbeat and energetic tone than the source material.  Two of the best examples of this are “Secret World” and “Solsbury Hill.”  The latter remains one of my favorite songs of all time, as it can put me in a good mood at almost any time.  My only disappointment is that they didn’t play “Steam” or “Big Time.”

The disc is presented in widescreen and full 5.1 surround sound so this is definately worth playing on a good home theater set up.  It would be worth the price if they ever put it out on BD or HD.  There are even a few bonus features, including a 9 min documentary about the tour and how they came up with some of the stunts and made them work.  If you are a fan of Peter Gabriel’s work, I highly recommend picking this one up.

Side note: Peter Gabriel – Play: The Videos is also a great DVD.  Its a collection of all his music videos with mini documentaries you can watch before each one.  Good stuff!

Video Games Live

Dude!!!   Video Games Live is going back out for another tour, I totally cannot wait.  I really hope they come to Ohio, I’ve never been to the show but it looks amazing.  Game music nowadays can be so great.

I remember the first time the soundtrack from a video game made an impact on me.  It was Final Fantasy VII.  Say what you want about FF 4, 5, and 6 being the high point of Nobuo Uematsu’s career.  Those games did not have the overall presentation package that 7 did.  Now, many years earlier I played Lunar 2: Eternal Blue on the Sega CD.  That was probably the first time I actually noticed the music as a part of the presentation.  The songs were repetitive and simple, but they fit the game and environments perfectly and really set the tone for the short anime cartoons interspersed throughout the story.  They remain instantly recognizable to me to this day.

I didn’t really get that again until I played Final Fantasy 7.  The graphics and the story and the characters and the music all came together to make such an incredible gaming experience that I have never forgotten it.  This is the first game where the music really moved me.  It blended with the story absolutely perfectly and instead of being repetitive, painted a picture of emotion and drama.  Who can forget the action packed first sequence trying to blow up the first mako reactor, or the reflective and slightly melencholy tune that compliments the flashback sequences between Cloud and Tifa.

Songs like the Shinra theme and the Turks’ theme so obviously point to deception, evil planning, and corporate exploitation.  This is the first game soundtrack I purchased and every time I listen to it I can picture the game and emotions that came from that very first play-through.  I can just see Sephiroth discovering his true origins, freaking out, and eventually losing his mind, all while tunes play that add to the foreboding and scary atmosphere.  You can almost feel Sephiroth’s torment and anguish.

There have been several games since then that have had a similar impact on me but as they say, you never forget your first.  I will be watching the Video Games Live website frequently for a stop in Ohio.  Preferably in Cleveland, but I don’t really care.  I’d drive to Cincinnatti to go to this concert.  Here’s me crossing my fingers!