Melody Maker, October 12, 1991: Difference between revisions
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The increasingly elaborate arrangements of his last two albums make for a complex sound that defies easy reproduction in concert. Yet tonight Costello makes no attempt at fidelity. Instead, he takes a scalpel to his material, dissecting song after song, deconstructing them, then slapping them roughly back together again, often much changed in the process. Time and again he inserts scraps of other songs into his own (like wedging the Monkees' "Daydream Believer" into the middle of "God's Comic") with an uncharacteristic playfulness. | The increasingly elaborate arrangements of his last two albums make for a complex sound that defies easy reproduction in concert. Yet tonight Costello makes no attempt at fidelity. Instead, he takes a scalpel to his material, dissecting song after song, deconstructing them, then slapping them roughly back together again, often much changed in the process. Time and again he inserts scraps of other songs into his own (like wedging the Monkees' "Daydream Believer" into the middle of "God's Comic") with an uncharacteristic playfulness. | ||
But if any one thing characterises his performance tonight, it's the vast chasm of quality that separates individual songs. He can, in the space of minutes, walk through a perfunctory "Veronica" | But if any one thing characterises his performance tonight, it's the vast chasm of quality that separates individual songs. He can, in the space of minutes, walk through a perfunctory "Veronica" — and then turn around and genuinely inspire gooseflesh with a stunning version of "Watching The Detectives," which, from humble beginnings as an unadorned guitar doodling, quickly spirals up and up into a frenzy, while we wait for the explosive climax that must surely come — but in fact never does. | ||
All in all, it makes fora demanding, unpredictable show, yet on at least one occasion tonight Costello displays what can only be described as outright genius. It comes when "So Like Candy" segues into "I Want You" — and then that song, wondrously, slides into a gorgeous reading of "The Very Thought Of You," in which his voice — for once devoid of its customary sneer — is allowed to deepen, to caress the lyrics rather than simply spit them out. | All in all, it makes fora demanding, unpredictable show, yet on at least one occasion tonight Costello displays what can only be described as outright genius. It comes when "So Like Candy" segues into "I Want You" — and then that song, wondrously, slides into a gorgeous reading of "The Very Thought Of You," in which his voice — for once devoid of its customary sneer — is allowed to deepen, to caress the lyrics rather than simply spit them out. | ||
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Tonight, greatness generally eluded Costello. But it was a much closer thing than many would have given him credit for. | Tonight, greatness generally eluded Costello. But it was a much closer thing than many would have given him credit for. | ||
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{{tags}}[[Concert 1991-09-20 Sydney|Entertainment Centre]] {{-}} [[Sydney]] {{-}} [[Australia]] {{-}} [[The Rude 5]] {{-}} [[Mighty Like A Rose]] {{-}} [[God's Comic]] {{-}} [[The Monkees]] {{-}} [[Veronica]] {{-}} [[Watching The Detectives]] {{-}} [[So Like Candy]] {{-}} [[I Want You]] {{-}} [[The Very Thought Of You]] {{-}} [[Hurry Down Doomsday (The Bugs Are Taking Over)]] {{-}} [[The Attractions]] | |||
{{cx}} | {{cx}} | ||
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{{Bibliography next | {{Bibliography next | ||
|prev = Melody Maker, July 13, 1991 | |prev = Melody Maker, July 13, 1991 | ||
|next = Melody Maker, | |next = Melody Maker, October 26, 1991 | ||
}} | }} | ||
'''Melody Maker, October 12, 1991 | '''Melody Maker, October 12, 1991 | ||
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{{Bibliography images}} | {{Bibliography images}} | ||
[[image:1991-10-12 Melody Maker page 21 clipping 01.jpg|360px | [[image:1991-10-12 Melody Maker page 21 clipping 01.jpg|360px]] | ||
<br><small>Clipping.</small> | <br><small>Clipping.</small> | ||
<small>Cover.</small><br> | |||
[[image:1991-10-12 Melody Maker cover.jpg|x120px|border]] | [[image:1991-10-12 Melody Maker cover.jpg|x120px|border]] | ||
{{Bibliography notes footer}} | {{Bibliography notes footer}} |
Revision as of 20:06, 25 December 2022
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