Cold Chisel The Last Stand Directed by Tony Stevens Produced by John McLean Starring Jimmy Barnes Ian Moss Don Walker Phil Small Steve Prestwich Music by Cold Chisel Cinematography John Whitteron Edited by Tony Stevens Distributed by Warner Release date July 1984 Country Australia Language English Last Stand is a documentary film of the final concert appearances by Australian rock band, Cold Chisel, prior to their first disbandment.[1] It was filmed on 13 and 15 December 1983 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre and released to cinemas in July 1984. It featured the group performing two of the four final concerts of their national Last Stand Tour, from 12 to 15 December 1983.[2] It is interspersed with short interviews from members of the band, their managers, audience members and Midnight Oil front man, Peter Garrett. Anna-Maria Delvoso of The Sydney Morning Herald observed, "This is not just another film-of-the-concert-of-the-album rock & roll picture. If this is commercial exploitation, it's worth every cent of it. Last Stand has an intelligent construction. Eschewing self-indulgence, the film displays high production values, excellent sound, camera and editing. There are no cinema verite shots of the band in the back rooms, twanging guitar strings and cracking jokes no-one can hear."[3] A DVD version featuring extra footage was issued in October 2005. Phonographic Copyright (p) – Cold Chisel Pty. Ltd. Copyright (c) – Cold Chisel Pty. Ltd. Licensed To – Warner Music Australia Pty. Limited Marketed By – Warner Music Australia Pty. Limited Manufactured By – Warner Music Australia Mixed At – Trackdown Scoring Stage Mixed At – 301 Studios, Sydney Filmed At – Sydney Entertainment Centre Recorded At – Sydney Entertainment Centre Credits Backing Vocals – Renee Geyer, Venetta Fields Bass Guitar, Vocals – Phil Small Drums, Vocals – Steve Prestwich Guitar, Vocals – Ian Moss Harmonica – Dave Blight Keyboards, Vocals, Written By – Don Walker (2) (tracks: All tracks except where noted above) Lead Vocals – Jimmy Barnes Mixed By – Rick Will Mixed By [DVD] – Simon Leadley Recorded By – John Lemon (2), Mark Opitz, Mark Opitz Saxophone – Jimmy Sloggett 1 Standing On The Outside 2 Cheap Wine 3 Rising Sun Written-By – Jimmy Barnes 4 Janelle 5 Khe Sanh 6 Twentieth Century 7 You Got Nothing I Want Written-By – Jimmy Barnes 8 Tomorrow 9 Star Hotel 10 Choir Girl 11 Bow River Written-By – Ian Moss 12 Flame Trees Written-By – Don Walker (2), Steve Prestwich 13 Saturday Night 14 Wild Thing Written-By – Chip Taylor 15 Goodbye Written-By – Don Walker (2), Jimmy Barnes 16 Don't Let Go Written-By – Jesse Stone Bonus 1 Only One Written-By – Jimmy Barnes Bonus 2 River Deep Mountain High Written-By – Ellie Greenwich, Jeff Barry, Phil Spector Bonus 3 It's Only Make Believe Written-By – Conway Twitty, Jack Nance Bonus 4 Band Soundcheck Bonus 5 Backstage Footage Bonus 6 Street Vox Pops ---------------------------------------------- This is among my favourite concert dvd's ... That is helped largely by Chisel being one of my favourite bands of all time, but it is also really very well done. If you want to check the band out, here is the first album thread I ever did, called Discover Cold Chisel Here. The reference guide is on the first page link there. It was my first album thread, and I didn't do too badly, but it is a little messy compared to moat of my threads, as I was figuring it out as I went along.... So forgive me for that. Although the opening intro says that this has doco footage and interviews spliced into it, this is one of the rare occasions where that never seems to bother me. It flows kind of seamlessly, and the bits and pieces included are relevant, and work well, particularly for someone that doesn't know the band. They also don't take over the show, or lose the feel. Don't get me wrong, I really would have liked this to be a straight and full concert, with doco stuff tacked on the back, but the way this is done actually works. Cold Chisel slogged it out in the harsh Aussie live scene from 1973, typically undergoing several line up changes and many trials, but in 1978 they had finally managed to get a record contract and released their debut album Cold Chisel. Their Debut single Khe Sanh was pretty much instantly banned from radio, because of the subject matter, but went on to become probably the most widely recognised and loved song on the Australian continent, and one of the first truly real songs written by anybody about the reality of being a returned Vietnam Vet. The band were a rock band, but they approached music with a broad stroke of brushes, covering most music styles and succeeding in their interpretations convincingly on every level. By 1980 They were the biggest band in Australia with the success of their masterful album East, that swept the field in the Australian Music awards for that year...... typically the band didn't like the fact the the awards show was sponsored by a TV magazine. They demanded to play live if they were to be at the awards show, and proceeded to alter the second half of their song My Turn to Cry into a vitriolic spit in the face of those who wanted to make a few bucks off the back of the latest light to flicker in the Aussie music industry. Chisel took off to conquer the US, because any serious band knows that to survive in the Aussie music industry, you have to have some overseas success, because Australia is much too large with too small of a population to really keep food on the plate. From all the reports I have read the band did very well in the US on their tour, but they received no support or promotion from their record company based in the US, and when their US promoter decided to go to the birthday party of some celebrities dog or something, the song You've Got Nothing I Want was written by Barnes, and the band basically refused to go back to the US, and in spite of requests from promoters to come back to the US, after their next amazing album Circus Animals, they headed off to Europe. While the band were in Europe the reality of the situation come to the fore..... the band at that stage had spent ten years slogging their guts out in Australia, and now to take it to the next level they were going to have to do that again. The band are in the top five live bands I have ever seen, and had they wished to go through it all again, they really could and should have been one of the biggest bands in the world, but they had become comfortable, and the cracks started to appear in the armour. Due to some infighting and problems in Europe, the band fired their drummer Steve Prestwich, and headed back to Australia.... While on a tour they just weren't feeling it anymore .... They decided to get back together as the original recording band, and record one last album together, the again, quite brilliant 20th Century, and they embarked on The Last Stand tour of Australia, the only country that seemed to really get what these guys were all about. They didn't just play 6 or 7 gigs to cover each state, they jumped in a bus and played all the bedraggled backwaters that had been for them for the length of their hard working career. Barnesy (lead singer) put so much into it that the band had to postpone the crescendo at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, because he lost his voice. Jimmy Barnes is one of the best, and most unknown overseas, front men that rock has seen, and especially heard. I had always had the original album released from this concert tour The Barking Spiders Live 1983, and I consider it to be an essential live album of the rock world ... sorry guys, but they were better than the much vaunted Who, and I do love the Who, I have all their albums, but Chisel were something else all together...... Every member wrote songs, because Mark Opitz encouraged them to at the East album sessions, and every member of the band wrote a hit. Don Walker was the main writer, and nobody would debate that, he was an excellent thoughtful writer, and under his pen they explored rock, blues, reggae, jazzish twists and turns and ballad with a bit of heart, rather than just tearjerkers for teens. Bassist Phil Small wrote the hit single My Baby. Barnesy wrote the visceral punch in the face to the US industry types that had screwed them over during their tour You've Got Nothing I Want, as well as My Turn to Cry and the very different for Barnesy No Sense. Ian Moss wrote possibly the band's live signature song, and one of my favourites Bow River. Steve Prestwich wrote the classic When The War Is Over, Forever Now and their final huge hit also Flame Trees. Jimmy Barnes went on to become the biggest rock star Australia has ever seen after the band broke up. Barnesy has 12 number one Australian albums, more than any artist in the world has ever achieved in Australia. Despite years of people throwing money at them to get back together, the band finally got back together of their own accord in 1997 to record the magic album return The Last Wave Of Summer. They toured and had another break. Returning in 2003 for the Ringside tour, which also became a dvd movie. Since then they have recorded another three albums, whenever they felt like it. The last being Blood Moon in 2019. I enjoy all the albums, and think they are all worth having, but the albums from the debut up to and including The Last Wave Of Summer are all top class albums deserving of a discerning ear. In 2011 Steve Prestwich was diagnosed with a brain tumour and underwent surgery from which he never awoke ...... This concert film is very worth anyones while investigating. I have a mate from the US who came over for a couple of beers one night, and he had made fun of me a bit about Chisel, but after I pretty much made him watch this ( ) he was stunned he had never heard of the guys before. Anyway, sorry about all that backlog of info, but this is more than just some dvd to me, it is a special piece of my heart in the form of music that reminds me of the tour I saw in 1983, and now over here in the US it reminds me of home... as much as I love the US, and am happy to be here, Aus will always be home, even though I was born in England. There is one copy on discogs for about $5 Cold Chisel - Last Stand There are a few copies on ebay for around $20 cold chisel the last stand dvd | eBay The DVD This ended up having a cd released of the whole show also, so if you are looking for the dvd, and the surround mix is actually pretty good, make sure it is the dvd you get. The surround mix is just DD 5.1, but it does sound good. The video quality is good dvd quality. As in you can tell it was recorded in 1983, but it is clear and although not hd bluray, it is very watchable. We open with the classic Standing on the Outside. Electric piano right side, electric guitar left side. Drums bass and vocals solid up front with nice balanced sub assist. When song finishes we get some band history via Vince Lovegrove, and Midnight Oil's Peter Garrett. We get a clip of Home and Brokenhearted from 1976. We move into Cheap Wine one of the bands signature songs. After this Ian Moss and Vince share some anecdotes about Barnesy. We quickly and smoothly move into Rising Sun, which is a solid rockabilly tune. I have always liked this 5.1 mix. Don Walker slams away fully on the right side. Mossy has his guitar mostly fully left side most of the time. The rhythm section and vocal comfortably hold fort up front. We move straight into Janelle, from the, at the time (I think) unreleased Twentieth Century album. Ian Moss sings this track with his wonderful blue/jazz vocals, Barnesy adding high harmonies. After the organ lead break Barnesy punches out the impact verse, then Mossy and Barnesy sing the final chorus together. Barensy gives a little anecdote about they weren't going to bother with singles, but radio stations told them they needed to release Khe Sanh as the first single, which they did, and it was banned two weeks later.... and we launch into the classic Khe Sanh. The audio is really very nice and clear. David Blight adds his harmonica to Khe Sanh, he always seemed to join the band on tour. We move into some old footage of the band playing the outro of One Long Day. Peter Garrett tells us an anecdote about Chisel and the Oils getting together for a beer and jamming until the early hours of the morning on their day off. We launch into the title track of the unreleased Twentieth Century album. Dave Blight rolls out the harp again. Even though there had been tensions in the band, you can see how much they loved playing together. Barnesy gives us an anecdote about the music awards show I linked above, and we get an excerpt of the performance. We also get Barnesy giving us the story about You've got nothing I want, which comes in right on cue. Barnesy famously used to drink a bottle of vodka or two during a show, and it wasn't watered down as anyone who knows the band knows. There's a famous story of a guy getting Barnesy's bottle and tipping it back to prove it was watered down... he promptly passed out and required medical attention. We get an anecdote about some of the prison gigs the guys played, and then launch into Tomorrow, a song about a prisoner on the run. The clarity of the instruments is excellent, ot almost sounds like it's a studio recording, but even in the studio they recorded live. We get a clip about the Star Hotel riots, and Don Walker narrating... and promptly move into Star Hotel, obviously about that event. There is no glitz and glamour, these guys are the archetypal rick band a few lights, blood, sweat and booze, but nobody misses a beat. The occasional pan to show the crowd, shows how much the band were loved. We move straight into Choir Girl, a moving ballad that broke the band wide open on 1980, and assisted them in becoming, even today, one of Australia's best known and most respected bands. We get an anecdote from Don about the Circus Animals tour. We get a small clip from the Circus Animals show, with the intro to Conversations... ideally hope one day we get the full show, but I don't know if it was all filmed.... we move into the brilliant Bow River.... among my favourite songs of all time. By the way we have a 4:3 ratio and a 16:9 ratio... mainly 19:9, but it isn't a distraction, this is too damn good for it to be. Mossy opens the vocals, with Barnesy doing harmonies. Dave Blight plays some more harp. Mossy launches into a lead break, and then Barnesy delivers the final punch verse. Barnesy and Mossy deliver the final chorus in unison.... if you didn't know better, you'd think they were actual brothers, certainly musical brothers. We move to Barnesy on his farm, and we see him with his daughter Mahalia (yes named after Mahalia Jackson) and move into the sensational Flame Trees. The thing about Chisel is they were gritty and raw and real, and their songs reflect that... all played and executed with polished professionalism that you just wouldn't expect looking at them, but ten years of slogging around the Australian pub circuit will do that. We get an anecdote about touring Germany and how psychologically difficult it was for the band to return to being nobodies overseas after being enormous in Aus, with a snippet of Painted Doll. We move into Saturday Night with Renae Geyer and Vanetta Fields on backing vocals.... it is another new song... Mossy adlibs the lyrics because he can't remember them, Barnesy laughs and pulls a piece of paper out of his pocket and walks over to Mossy with it... if you didn't know about the lyrics you'd never know... it's a beautiful bit of humanity. Phil Small the bass player reflects on the last tour and show. Steve Prestwich puts in his ideas on the band. We see Barnesy back stage and hear a little of Mosdy doing his marvelous version of Ray Charles Georgia , sadly not included.... and the band jam their way in the troughs Wild Thing.... yea I know, but these guys were a rock band that loved music, and they would play whatever they liked. The band made this their own when they decided to play it, and nobody sings like Barnesy. Barnsey sits on the edge of the stage with his beer, squeezing every last bit of power out that he can. Mossy launches into some lead guitar, Barnesy wanders through the crowd. He gives some girl the mic and she whoos into it, Mosdy mimics her on the guitar. The songs breaks into an Adlibs section, Barnesy still wandering around the crowd. Barnesy gets back to stage grabs Mossy around the neck and literally drags him down to sit on the edge of of the stage and they have a bit of fun jamming, then he jumps up and says "carn Mossy get up" and they launch into a crescendo to end the song. Barnesy smashes the mic stand in half salutes the crowd with his bottle and we wind it up. Then we launch into Goodbye (Astrid, Goodbye) which is just a power packed rock and roll song. Don Walker smashes away on his electric piano, Barnesy jumps on it. Dave Blight blows some more harp, Billy plays some sax Barnesy tips the melted ice for their beers over the crowd and throws the plastic container into the crowd. We get a break down. Barnesy gives a signal that he wants to play Don't Let Go the Jesse Stone track, by singing I hear the whistle blow it must be ten o'clock, the band get the signal and launch into it. Pure beautiful rock and roll mayhem. Barnesy grabs Mossy again and jams the mic into his fretboard, and Mossy starts playing slide with it.... and all too soon it's over. The closing titles roll with the band playing Let's go get stoned in the background. As added extras we get Only One, a Barnesy track off Twentieth Century, an excellent song. Two great covers Tina Turner's River Deep Mountain High, and Conway Twitty's It's Only Make Believe... We also get a soundcheck version of Build this Love of Twentieth Century. These guys are a classic rock band, with so much to offer, and they deliver every time. I have the Last Stand, Rockpalast 1982, Ringside 2003, Live Tapes vol 1 (dvd/cd and bluray) 2012, Live Tapes vol 3 dvd/cd with ten songs from the Manly Vale hotel 1980 and Live Tapes vol 4 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre just prior to its demolition in 2017, where this movie was also shot. Look I love this band, I think this is a surprisingly great concert video. There is documentary stuff in between a lot of songs, but it is done really smoothly, and in context, and particularly if you don't know the band it paints the perfect picture of who they were without moving into hyperbole. The audio is really great, the video is very good ... I think even if you didn't really know the band you would enjoy it, it is very well done, and the band are just fantastic. Khe Sanh Janelle YouTube Bow River (not the video from the dvd, but I believe it's the audio) YouTube Wild Thing YouTube
Inxs Live Baby Live (bluray) Live Baby Live is a live video of INXS's performance at Wembley Stadium directed by David Mallet.[14] It was released simultaneously as the live CD of the same name. The concert was the second-last of a string of concerts in London for INXS's Summer XS Tour. The video was re-released as a DVD in 2003 and was digitally remixed and mastered in 5.1 surround sound. The band played to a sold-out crowd of over 72,000 fans. Special features include band interviews and backstage footage.[14] The performance was held on 13 July 1991, on the six-year anniversary of the original Live Aid at the same venue. The video footage was shot with sixteen 35 mm cameras that included one in a helicopter that circled the venue. Amazon.com's editorial reviewer, Tom Keogh, felt "fans can rejoice over the release of this buoyant concert film ... the late Michael Hutchence, is at his feral-romantic best, stalking and swiveling his way through an energized set of welterweight pop".[14] Australian country musician, Steve Forde, declared "I missed out on seeing Michael do his thing in person, but that Live Baby Live DVD is bad ass! We put that DVD on the big screen in the front lounge of the tour bus. It's like going to a 101 class to be a frontman rock star. Wembley Stadium chock full, singing every word. Awesome. My favourite track from that set is definitely 'Devil Inside'. Is he still relevant? Absolutely".[15] Eagle Rock Entertainment released the concert film in the US and Canada on DVD and Blu-ray Disc and in the United Kingdom on DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD, alongside Blu-ray and DVD editions packaged with the CD soundtrack on 26 June 2020.[29][30] 2019 remastered track listing "Guns In The Sky" "New Sensation" "I Send A Message" "The Stairs" "Know The Difference" "Disappear" "By My Side" "Hear That Sound" "Original Sin" "Lately" "The Loved One" "Wild Life" "Mystify" "Bitter Tears" "Suicide Blonde" "What You Need" "Kick" "Need You Tonight" "Mediate" "Never Tear Us Apart" "Who Pays The Price" "Devil Inside" --------------------------------------------- Inxs started out as a kind of alt./indie/new wave band in the late seventies, and gradually worked their way into the Australian hearts and minds by 81/82. By the time The Swing came out in 1984 Inxs ruled the pop/rock waves in the land of Aus. By 1987 the band had changed their style a little (although I think it was organic) to be a little more acceptable to US audiences and the Kick album exploded all over the world. The X album in 1990 did very well and the band were riding a wave of success. This newly released bluray has been cleaned up - video and audio, and was recorded at possibly the peak of the band's career Live at Wembley stadium in front of a sold out 74,000 fans. This is very recently released and available at Amazon for about $18 https://www.amazon.com/INXS-Live-Wembley-Stadium-Blu-ray/dp/B082JLJRQ2 but I am sure your favourite supplier will have this. I have a shonky dvd, which I think must have been a bootleg.... when I got around to getting it, it was out of print.... so if you're interested, don't hold out too long. I'm going to hook straight into this one ... because ya'll know the band. Sadly they seem to have drifted off everybody's radar since Michael's sad passing, and the band's aimless wandering afterwards, but there was an excellent documentary about the truth of the Hutchence tragedy recently, and hopefully the aimless wanderings of the band after his death can be relegated to the back seat, and the great pop/rock music the band made will be appreciated again..... Personally I think the band peaked with Shabooh Shoobah, The Swing and Listen Like Thieves, but internationally the albums after seem to be the best known (and are still very good, Welcome to Wherever You are seems sadly underrated). I hope you don't have this @riskylogic , if you do, message me and we'll make a surround sound trade off. The picture quality in really very solid. The drums open and band come out and settle into a groove and launch into Guns in the Sky. As anyone knows who has seen this video at all the crowd is enraptured, and when New Sensation starts the whole crowd bouncing up and down in unison is quite remarkable. During the power chords in the verse Tim Farriss' guitar is on the right side. I send a message has Farriss's guitar there also. Andrew Farriss' keys are left side. Hutchence vocal is centre channel. The mix is good, it is a little bit more immersive than the ambient mixes we often get. There is a bit of sub on Jon Farriss' kick. Kirk Pengilly's guitar is up front, as is his sax when he plays it. Hutchence really was in fine voice here. Andrew Farriss, the main writer is playing guitar on Know the Difference. Disappear has the crowd "doo doo dooing" The bass guitar could possibly do with being a little louder. 74,000 bouncing fans again. By my side. Pengilly acoustic up front. Tim Farriss gtr right side. They could have slid the acoustic or keyboards more to the left... it sounds good, but aside from Tim's guitar it's mainly front. The performance is excellent though. Hear that sound comes on. Original Sin is followed by Lately, which has not previously been available, but is included in the new disc. It opens with the keys kind of swelling around us, and Pengilly playing his sax. Then we launch into an inxs riff and rhythm track. The band launch into their later version of The Loved One, a cover of a track by the Loved Ones. Wild Life has a guitar either side. Mystify, Bitter Tears, Suicide Blonde, What You Need, Kick, Need You Tonight/Mediate, Never Tear Us Apart.... the international hits keep coming. The synth drums in What you need are in the rears. Who Pays the Price and Devil Inside bring us home. Shining Star plays over the end credits. This is very well done. the audio is good, but it could be better ... ie there could be more bass guitar, we have guitar on the right side and it works well, but we could have guitar or keys on the left, and generally don't ... don't get me wrong, it sounds good, these are just minor quibbles. the picture quality is excellent.... Here is the thing for me though ... and this is just a personal thing ... There are only three songs from my three favourite Inxs albums and they aren't even my favourites from those albums, but that is just me being a nostalgic freak I guess. For most people this is going to have all the songs you want. It is heavy on Kick and X tracks, and that shows a band that is really playing for the moment with their new material, which granted was selling really well, perhaps because of these types of set lists ... So don't let my opinion sway you there. For me some really important Inxs songs (in my weird little world anyhow) Just Keep Walking, Underneath The Colours, Stay Young, Don't Change, One Thing, Black And White, The Swing, Johnson's Aeroplane, Burn For You, Kiss The Dirt, Listen Like thieves, This Time .... these are my bread and Butter Inxs songs. So this is an excellent concert video, and it is done really very well, and the band certainly had some big hits off these two main albums featured, but all my favourites are left off..... Hopefully we may get a Listen Likes Thieves tour concert one day, and most of my faves would be on there
@mark winstanley Cold Chisel: $6 + shipping from Australia. Hmmm. INXS: My copy is supposed to arrive on Monday. Hey you saved me the trouble of writing it up; I'll let you off easy this time and make amends with Midnight Oil.
I reckon you'll enjoy it if you like the Oils. I found it surprisingly good. Can't remember what the mix is like though.
LaserCD has Transatlantic's KaLIVEoscope Deluxe edition (2 DVD 3 CD 1 Blu Ray) at $23 which is a super price.
I watched the new Blu-ray the other night and the picture is stunning. They did a great job with the restoration. I wish they provided an uncropped option but it looks great in widescreen and the original DVD is out there for the original aspect ratio. I really hope they release more live material from earlier in their career. The Rockpalast show has a great tracklist.
40th Anniversary Reunion Concert Live Performance by Emerson Lake & Palmer Released 2011 Recorded July 5th, 2010 – High Voltage Rock Festival, London Genre Progressive rock Length 90:29 Label MVD Visual Producer Ethan Mesmer When Emerson, Lake & Palmer reunited for a 40th anniversary concert at the High Voltage Festival in 2010, it sparked long-dormant hopes that the trio might find their way back together on a more permanent basis. Sadly for fans, that show turned out to be ELP's last. Both Emerson and Lake died in 2016. As drummer Carl Palmer explained in 2013, the band seemed to lose something in the long layoff that followed their previous round of activity in 1998. "We rehearsed for five weeks, which I could never understand why we needed to rehearse that long," he pointed out — and quickly admitted that while he didn't agree with the long rehearsal schedule, they might have actually needed more practice. "Upon hearing the recordings, maybe five weeks was not long enough," Palmer added. "It wasn’t to the standard that I liked, and I didn’t think it sounded that good." Personnel Keith Emerson – keyboards, synthesizers Greg Lake – bass guitar, acoustic and electric guitar, harmonica, vocals Carl Palmer – drums, percussion Track Listing 1 Karn Evil 9: 1st Impression - Part 2 5:53 2 The Barbarian 5:16 3 Bitches Crystal 4:32 4 Knife-Edge 5:47 5 From The Beginning 5:05 6 Touch And Go 3:30 7 Take A Pebble/Piano Solo/Tarkus 18:41 8 Farewell To Arms 5:30 9 Lucky Man 6:18 10 Pictures At An Exhibition 16:20 11 Fanfare For The Common Man/Drum Solo/Rondo 10:05 12 End Credits 1:03 Version Control There are both DVD and Bluray versions of this. I have the MVD visual bluray that is still available from Amazon. The Concert On casual inspection this release screams DVD. It has a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix, an alternative DD stereo option, and all the liner notes refer to the product as a DVD. However, the bluray does seem to have 1080p video, so there’s that. The lighting is very good too. But for audio, we’ve got the choice of DD Stereo or DD 5.1. Might as well go with the latter, but it still seems like a stereo mix – the center channel is just another front speakers and there’s a little reverb, mostly from Emerson keyboards, in the back. “Karn Evil 9: 1st Impression - Part 2” This is what started off the second side of the Brain Salad Surgery LP. As they come on stage, they all seem a little pudgy, but especially Lake. Their initial rendition seemed entirely adequate to me, with the exception of Lake’s vocals that have lost more than a little of their edge. Two large screens on other side of the stage showing live shots of band members. “The Barbarian” Opening song from the s/t debut. It’s all instrumental and it sounds great. “Bitches Crystal” From Tarkus. Lake with vocals, and again they sound substandard. Emerson can still play though. “From The Beginning” From the debut. Lake’s vocals sound OK on this one. Either I’m getting use to it or maybe it’s that this song doesn’t require as much range. I think it’s the latter. I’m also thinking the acoustics are sounding outdoorsy – i.e. not so good. OTOH, it also now occurs to me that the light show is exceptionally good. There are batteries of lights behind the stage that do some pretty cool stuff on occasion. “Touch And Go” From Emerson, Lake & Powell. Not bad, but Palmer sems a little less busy for some reason. “Take A Pebble/Piano Solo/Tarkus” From debut and Tarkus. Maybe he’s warmed up now; Lake sounds great. Emerson not too shabby either. Ok, I mean still amazing. Emerson seems to have a synth that can also shoot fireworks. Longest rack at nearly 19 minutes. Great performance, I’m officially liking this now. “Farewell To Arms” From Black Moon. Relatively slow song, Emerson mainly sticks to organ. Lake sings the whole way through. A nice lead upto the next song. “Lucky Man” Their big hit song from the debut, but this is an extended version – Emerson starts off with piano solo. Lake switches to acoustic guitar. The crowd sings along from the front speakers; what a worthless surround mix. The acoustics are sounding outdoorsy again. “Pictures At An Exhibition” Classical piece written by Mussorgsky. Lake back to bass. This is largely an Emerson show; like Wakeman, he can simulate a whole orchestra if need be. In middle section, Lake puts down the bass and just sings, Palmer sits. Bass and drums both come back, and Lake sings some more. Fireworks at the end. Not bad, but “Tarkus” was the better epic performance. “Fanfare For The Common Man/Drum Solo/Rondo” More classical rippage (Aaron Copland). Starts as a symphony with a heavy bass line, but quickly turns into a drum solo. Palmer has taken his shirt off – I’ve taken points off for that before and I probably should again, but the concert is almost over so I'll let it go. Emerson and Lake come back in for some heavy electronica – all semblance of a symphony is gone. _______ It’s a classic prog set list. Early on, I was thinking I might have to dock a point for the performance, but the middle part of the concert was pretty great, so I won’t. It was a good show too. However, the audio was rather pitiful. A dolby digital surround mix with no surround, and to add to that insult the stereo was dolby digital too, and this is on a bluray released in 2011. Someone was asleep at the wheel. Overall, I'm not sure I'm satisfied with this as a good representation of the band. Might have to look for something older that has better audio with lesser video quality. Or, I could just play Brain Salad Surgery in surround again and leave it at that. Music – 3 Sound quality – 2 Video presentation – 3 Video quality – 3 Surround – 1
Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die (The TV Special Edition) Studio Performance by Jethro Tull Released 27 Nov 2015 Recorded March 26, and March 27, 1976 Genre Progressive rock Label Chrysalis Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! is the ninth studio album released by British band Jethro Tull, recorded in December 1975 and released in 1976. Even before it was released, some thought was given to a stage performance of the concept album, but those plans gave way to a BBC TV special. If that weren’t tragic enough, when the time came to produce a proper book set with a Steven Wilson 5.1 mix, not all of the tapes from the original album could be located. As a result, the tapes from the recording made for the TV special were pressed into service instead. But here’s the silver lining that brings us here today: The Steven Wilson 5.1 mix has video to go with it. Personnel Jethro Tull Ian Anderson – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, flute, harmonica, additional electric guitar and percussion Martin Barre – electric guitar John Evan – piano, keyboards John Glascock – backing vocals, bass guitar Barriemore Barlow – drums, percussion Additional musicians Dee Palmer – saxophone (on track 5), piano (on track 11) Maddy Prior – backing vocals (on track 8) Angela Allen – backing vocals (on tracks 2 & 7) Track Listing 1. Prelude 0:53 2. Quiz Kid 4:03 3. Crazed Institution 4:35 4. Salamander 2:53 5. Taxi Grab 3:50 6. From A Dead Beat To An Old Greaser Saxophone 4:11 7. Bad Eyed And Loveless 2:10 8. Big Dipper 3:33 9. Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die! 5:34 10. Pied Piper 4:36 11. The Chequered Flag (Dead Or Alive) 5:23 Version Control Mark covered this book set already today on the surround thread. There are two and a half surround mixes of the album in the set. One of them isn’t really the original album, and it has video to go with it. I will deal with that one here, and I’ll comment on the other one and a half on the other thread at some point. The Show It’s 4:3 video, and it’s a little blurry – have to go with VHS video quality. The stereo associated with the video is dolby digital, but fortunately the surround mix is DTS. “Prelude” Starts with Anderson by himself in the studies, seated with an acoustic guitar. Credits roll. Video cuts away to show some comic book frames that tell the story – comic interludes between the songs are the norm. Guitar in front, vocals in center. “Quiz Kid” The whole band is in the studio now. Anderson has a tux and bow tie on, Barlow also wearing a garish suit. Evan seems to be one of the Village People. Barre and Glascock both dressed semi-normally, both in leather pants and boots though. Starts with electric guitar left front, Anderson flute then vocals in center, bass on right. Let it be noted that Anderson doesn’t actually have a flute, and there’s some acoustic guitar in there that no one is playing; I think they are all pretending to play. Harpsichord rear right, acoustic guitar rear left. Strings in rear. Anderson goes back stage to wheel in a cart stacked with appliances – while singing, supposedly. The camera has a habit of going sideways on occasion. The TV set on the cart ends up broken. “Crazed Institution” Electric guitar on right this time, acoustic guitar in rear. Drums and bass front, Anderson flute and vocals center. Complete change in wardrobe – I’m not going to try to keep up with that. Keyboards and background vocals in rear. Evan has a real piano now, which he didn’t have before. “Salamander” Acoustic guitars front and back (Anderson and Barre) with woman dancing. Tambourine from Barlow in front, Anderson vocals center, flute in rear, and Anderson is shown playing this time. Some double imaging. Another change in wardrobe, no keyboards or bass. “Taxi Grab” Organ right, electric guitar left, bass and drums in front, Anderson vocals center. Anderson harmonica in rear right. Anderson miraculously seems to be able to sing and play harmonica at the same time. Yes, another wardrobe change. “From A Dead Beat To An Old Greaser Saxophone” The studio has been stripped on instruments; it’s been turned into a pub. Anderson sings into his beer. Barre plays an air guitar. Strings and keyboards in rear. One of the guys in the back turns around “Bad Eyed And Loveless” Anderson, by himself, seems to have found the fire escape, acoustic guitar in front, vocals in center. “Big Dipper” Organ right , flute left, guitar left front, vocals center, bass and drums front. “Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die!” Hey, Glascock, Barre and Evan have the same wardrobe as on “Quiz Kid”. Strings and horns in the rear, everything else in front. Background vocals in rear at the end. It’s the title track, so: “Pied Piper” Acoustic guitar in front, vocals center, bass and drums in front. Barlow “playing” with monstrous sticks. Flute and strings in rear. “The Chequered Flag (Dead Or Alive)” The studio is a living room with a couch, recliner and drum set. Strings in the rear, keyboards left, guitar on right. ______ I have to rate this album pretty low on the JT totem pole, so it’s not the one I would have picked to see them hamming it up on while pretending to play. When held up to their earlier work, it’s pretty redundant. However, it’s still great to seem them “perform” back when they were only a little past their peak. Having a great surround mix to go with it doesn’t hurt either. Music – 1 Sound quality – 3 Video presentation – 3 Video quality – 1 Surround – 3
Lol Nah mate, that was my first Transatlantic purchase, probably 2 or 3 years ago. Not guilty yr honour
I just finished watching the Yello's Live In Berlin blu-ray and had to jump on the forum to talk it up. I picked it up a couple of years ago but didn't know their latest album very well at the time so I put off watching it. This is important because 11 of the 20 tracks on the disc are from the Toy album and I wanted to get to know the tracks before playing the concert video. I haven't kept up with them terribly well since the late 80s but Toy is their first album that's really grabbed me since Flag. It's got that classic, eclectic mix of styles that they're known for, some great song writing and excellent guest singers. The disc has a 4.1 surround mix and PCM stereo to choose from. I didn't see credits for the surround mix but the music was produced by Yello themselves so maybe they did the mix. Whoever did it did a superb job in my opinion. A very immersive mix at times and your sub woofer will get a great workout. The visuals are stunning as well. It was shot at Kraftwerk, Berlin and that venue is now on my bucket list. Very cool looking place! Guest vocalists Malia and Fifi Rong performed the songs they did on Toy and sounded great as well. It looks like it's still available for about $20 on the US Amazon site but they claim it's a region 2 disc on the page. I don't think that's correct though. I only see one version listed on Discogs and it's region free. I highly recommend the disc for Yello fans. I'll be the first to admit their music is not for everyone so I suggest sampling a few songs on YouTube before buying if you're not familiar with their sound. Kiss The Cloud with Fifi Rong, Tool Of Love and Blue Biscuit would be my suggestions. For me though, this disc is right up there with Steven Wilson's Home Invasion in terms of overall presentation. Get the blu-ray for the fantastic lossless surround mix.
Where We Stood Live Performance by The Pineapple Thief Released 2017 Recorded February 11th, 2017 – Islington Assembly Hall, London Genre Progressive rock Length 90:29 Label KScope Bringing to close an unforgettable 14-date European Winter tour of their 2016 summer hit album Your Wilderness, The Pineapple Thief, led by post-progressive mastermind Bruce Soord and reinforced by Gavin Harrison (King Crimson) on drums with Darran Charles (Godsticks) on guitar, gave a truly awe-inspiring performance on 11th February 2017 at the sold-out Islington Assembly Hall. Where We Stood showcases tight playing from both band regulars and guests on tracks from Your Wilderness, including In Exile, No Man's Land and The Final Thing On My Mind, and of the classics from previous albums, Nothing At Best, Show A Little Love and Simple As That. Personnel Bruce Soord – Vocals, guitar, composition Jon Sykes - Bass guitar Steve Kitch - Keyboards Darran Charles - Guitar Gavin Harrison – Drums Track Listing 1 Tear You Up 2 The One You Left To Die 3 (The Band Name) 4 No Man's Land 5 Alone At Sea 6 (Early Years) 7 That Shore 8 (Darran) 9 Reaching Out 10 (Drums) 11 In Exile 12 Take Your Shot 13 (Steve) 14 Show A Little Love 15 Fend For Yourself 16 (Jon) 17 Part Zero 18 Simple As That 19 The Final Thing On My Mind 20 Snowdrops 21 (The Clapping) 22 Nothing At Best The tracks in parentheses are documentary segments. There is an option to play the concert only without those tracks. Version Control When this was first released there was a CD + DVD, version, bluray version, and a box set with 2 CDs, a DVD, and the bluray. I missed out on the bluray and ended up getting the box. However, there is a new CD + bluray version which is currently for sale. Amazon seems to be sold out now, but Burning Shed has it. The Concert It’s a small venue. We’ve got HD-video, DTD-HD audio. I’ll go with concert-only, which give you a choice of two surround mixes. I’ll go with main one. However, I did check out the other mix for a couple of songs – it seems to have lead vocals in center and heavy reverb in the rear - the sort of mix I give a rating of 2 for. “Tear You Up” From Your Wilderness. So it starts up with Soord on acoustic guitar in surround, and his lead vocals in center channel – so it seems straightaway that we have discrete surround mix. Bass and drums are in front, Charles guitar is on left, keyboards on right, Charles and Sykes background vocals rear left and right, respectively. Soord switches to electric guitar, but he’s still in surround. “The One You Left To Die” From Magnolia. Seems to be the same mix, that’s it unless I say different. Soord with electric guitar. “No Man's Land “ Soord starts on acoustic again. The mix is a little different – keyboards are in back, and after the lyrics are sung, Soord vocals are in surround. “Alone At Sea” From Magnolia. Soord electric guitar, and he’s on the right opposite Charles. I think keyboards are in front, but they are hard to puck out. “That Shore” From Your Wilderness. Left and right guitars again, keyboards front and synth back. Some percussion in rear too. “Reaching Out” From All the Wars. I think it’s Soord electric guitar in surround, keyboards on right. Definitely some percussion in the back again too. Soord slide work predominantly rear right. Charles with flaming guitar solo on left, then Soord joins on right. All the songs are really good, but let’s drop the video here: “In Exile” From Your Wilderness. Keyboards rear, Soord guitar rear left. Charles and Sykes background vocals left and right front. I think Charles guitar is in front too, but he’s not playing it much – but then he kicks in with a solo definitely on the left, and Soord is back on the right. “Take Your Shot “ From Your Wilderness. Starts out with Charles guitar rea left, then keyboards rear right. Then the band kicks in and we have left and right guitar. “Show A Little Love” From Someone Here Is Missing, my favorite album, and this just might be might favorite PThief song. I also figured out maybe why the keyboards keep seeming to disappear when both guitars get going – the bass line is coming from Kitch, not Sykes. I think that happens a lot. Anyway, Sykes starts in again and the keyboards come back on the right. G “Fend For Yourself” From Your Wilderness. Soord acoustic guitar in surround, piano in rear. Charles solo in front. “Part Zero” From Variations on a Dream. I don’t have this album, but this song is on the 3000 Days compilation. Acoustic guitar in surround, mellotron in rear. Soord takes is guitar back to play with Harrison, then out into the audience a bit. Charles guitar solo on left. “Simple As That “ From Magnolia. Charles guitar rear, Soord guitar front. “The Final Thing On My Mind” From Your Wilderness. Soord with acoustic guitar. Charles in surround but a bit more in the rear I think, Soord in front. Piano in rear. Charles with solo at the end, still coming from all four speakers. End of Set. “Snowdrops” From Little Man, also on 3000 Days. Whoa, all of a sudden we’ve got great light show. Soord acoustic guitar in surround, Sykes background vocals and percussion in rear. Harrsion and Charles sitting it out. Crowd clapping in rear. Soord goes electric, Charles and Harrison come in with left and right guitars. “Nothing At Best” From Someone Here Is Missing. No wait – this is my favorite song. Synth starts in front, migrates towards rear. Left and right guitars. Synth solo in front. Sure are a lot of old fogies in the audience – seems like they are mostly older than the band, which is a little weird. _______ There are a few songs on here that aren’t completely brilliant. Well “Fend For Yourself” anyway – maybe that’s because it is missing the clarinet. The main surround mix is great too – the other one is more pedestrian, which some people may prefer. The only thing it doesn’t get top marks from me for is the visual show, but there was the one bit in the encore that was very cool. This is my first Pineapple Thief video; I hope there are more coming because they are an awesome band that does a pretty good job of filling the niche that Porcupine Tree vacated. Hey, they even have the same drummer now. I mainly bought the set to get surround mix for Your Wilderness that Mark reviewed last week, but I have to say the concert is best thing on it. Of course, the surround mixes are a great bennie too. I paid almost $50 for it and I think I got a great deal. A great bargain for 10 quid. Music – 3 Sound quality – 3 Video presentation – 2 Video quality – 3 Surround – 3 (main mix) or 2 (alternate mix)
These guys are probably my favourite new discovery this year. I bought the Dissolution 5.1 on a whim and loved it.... I think @riskylogic told me about this set, so I hunted it down, and got the cd/dvd/bluray set....i love the concert, and finally getting a chance to go through the two 5.1 albums last weekend sealed it. This is a great set, and if you like the band at all, this is amazing value for about ten bucks..... if you have never heard the band before, but like Porcupine Tree and some alt rock stuff with some atmospherics, it is definitely worth buying just to try out. Even if you hate it, you will get your money back, plus, in a month or two when it is unavailable again..... I would be stunned if someone hated it though. Check it out.
No, I didn't tell you about it because I learned of the surround mixes from you when you first listed Your Wilderness as potential review candidate last fall. However, I do take credit for buying what seemed to be the last box set on the market (I got it from a third party through Amazon UK), which immediately led to the rerelease of the bluray which has all the same material at a much lower price. I will suggest picking up Someone Here is Missing even without surround - it's a great album.
Bullet in a Bible Live Performance by Green Day Released November 15, 2005 Recorded June 18–19, 2005 Venue National Bowl, Milton Keynes Genre Punk rock, alternative rock Length 64:57 Label Reprise Producer Rob Cavallo, Green Day Bullet in a Bible is a live album by American rock band Green Day, released on November 15, 2005 by Reprise Records. It was directed by Samuel Bayer, who was the director of all the videos from American Idiot. Bullet in a Bible documents one of the two biggest shows that Green Day have performed in their career. They played in front of a crowd of over 130,000 people at the Milton Keynes National Bowl in United Kingdom on June 18–19, 2005. The band was supported by Jimmy Eat World, Taking Back Sunday, and Hard-Fi during their American Idiot world tour. Fourteen of the twenty songs performed at these shows were included on the disc; missing out "Jaded", "Knowledge", "She", "Maria", "Homecoming" and "We Are The Champions". Personnel Green Day Billie Joe Armstrong – lead vocals, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, harmonica Mike Dirnt – bass, backing vocals Tré Cool – drums, percussion, backing vocals Additional musicians Jason White – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, backing vocals Jason Freese – keyboards, piano, acoustic guitar, trombone, saxophone, accordion, backing vocals Ronnie Blake – trumpet, timpani, percussion, backing vocals Mike Pelino – rhythm guitar, backing vocals on St. Jimmy Track Listing Title Length 1. "American Idiot" 4:32 2. "Jesus of Suburbia" 9:23 3. "Holiday" 4:12 4. "Are We the Waiting" 2:49 5. "St. Jimmy" 2:55 6. "Longview" 4:44 7. "Hitchin' a Ride" 4:03 8. "Brain Stew" 3:02 9. "Basket Case" 2:58 10. "King for a Day/Shout" ("Shout" written and originally performed by The Isley Brothers) 8:47 11. "Wake Me Up When September Ends" 5:03 12. "Minority" 4:19 13. "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" 4:44 14. "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" 3:26 Version Control Originally released in a CD +DVD package in 2005, which is what I have. A bluray version was released in 2010, but those are harder to come by – the DVDs are dirt cheap. Discogs. I ordered a copy for $3 + $3 shipping, then the seller sent it for nothing because he felt it was misgraded – the cover was pretty beat up. So, I guess $3 should get you a primo copy. The Concert It’s DVD video, and we’ve got the choice of 5.1 DD or stereo PCM. The surround uses the center channel for lead vocals, but it’s mostly crowd noise in the rear (and there’s quite a bit of that in front too). Might as well listen in stereo, but the sound quality isn’t that great anyway. It's an outdoor concert, and the crowd is humongous. "American Idiot" From American Idiot. Starts out with interview that can be skipped – first song is chapter 2. Armstrong has a guitar, but I don’t think he’s playing it very much. The guitar keeps going even when his hands are up in the air – the real lead guitarist is White, I think – he’s over on the left. They may be playing tandem part of the time. It’s a really big crowd and there are screens set up all over. When it starts out the editing is really too busy – doesn’t stay in one place for more than a second or two – but it gets better in that regard. Also often switches between color and black and white, which is kinda cool. "Jesus of Suburbia" From American Idiot. Another skippable interview. It’s a really big stage for four guys without much in the way equipment. They run around a lot. There’s a runway protrusion into the crowd – Armstrong goes out there a lot. Even though they are playing at “night”, it’s June in England – won’t get dark until 10. White concentrates on playing guitar so Armstrong on theatrics. "Holiday" / "Are We the Waiting" From American Idiot. Another skippable interview, I’ve got the drill down now. Fireworks helps start off. There are other guest musicians listed, but I only se White. "St. Jimmy" From American Idiot. Armstrong puts his guitar down entirely and goes out to the end of the runway. The crowds sings along but from the front – I’m beginning to reconsider my choice of soundtrack. Ah well, it doesn’t matter – it’s an outdoor concert. Not going to be a sonic gem. There’s another guy out there playing guitar now – Pelino I guess. "Longview" From Dookie. It’s getting a little bit dark and Dirnt leads off. Arnstrong has a guitar again and I think he’s really playing – don’t see anyone else. “Hitchin' a Ride" From Nimrod. Still just the three of them "Brain Stew" From Insomniac. I think it’s dark now, the song cacophonic, and we’ve got flames erupting from the stage. . Sax and horn players over on the right. The band is introduced. The sax player is Jason Freese, who takes his sax out on the runway – he has apparently been playing other instruments in the back all along. "Basket Case" From Dookie. Just the three of them again. "King for a Day/Shout" From Nimrod. ("Shout" written and originally performed by The Isley Brothers). All three band members are wearing very special hats, and there are plenty of extra musicians on stage. If I wanted the best song, I’d go with “American Idiot”, but for showmanship this has to be the choice: That wasn't punk rock at the end, just saying. "Wake Me Up When September Ends" From American Idiot. Well, this isn’t very punky either. Great song though. I guess we've entered into the alternative rock part of the set. "Minority" From Warning. Alrighty then, this is punky. Or at at the start. Freese comes out his cubby up on the right with an accordion, but I can’t hear it. Armstrong pulls out a harmonica. He has a habit of pandering to the crowd in the middle of a song, which is sort of annoying – but most of these songs are pretty simple and you’ve pretty much heard them after the first minute or so. "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" From American Idiot. Another great song from a great album, but I think they have to turn their punk card in. "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" From Nimrod. Ok, I skipped over the last interview segment, and the time counter sits at 149:20. Since there’s only 65 minutes of actual music and the last track is 3:29, that’s about 39 minutes of interview that I watched maybe 5 minutes of. Anyway last track, and it starts black and white. Armstrong goes solo at the end of the runway, and he’s definitely playing guitar. Finishes with firework show. ______ Well, that was fun but I’m glad I got it for cheap, or nothing actually. It didn’t need to be any longer because I had enough after 65 minutes. If I actually want to hear Green Day, I’m much better off playing American Idiot or one of their other albums – the sound quality is better and there aren’t any interruptions. Music – 2 Sound quality – 2 Video presentation – 3 (that was a very big crowd) Video quality – 2 Surround – 1
Thanks for the heads up on the reissue. I remember Mark's review a while back but wasn't willing to risk it for the price of the box set but the reissue is very reasonably priced. I did end up finding it on Amazon (hopefully the right version) by searching for the UPC: 802644755601
Armistice Day Live Performance by Midnight Oil Released November 2018 Recorded 6-18 November 2017 Venue The Domain, Sydney, Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Melbourne Genre Rock Label Sony Music Australia Armistice Day (subtitled Live at the Domain, Sydney) is a live album by Australian rock band Midnight Oil. The majority of the album was recorded live at The Domain in Sydney, Australia on 11 November 2017; also known as Armistice Day, with three tracks recorded at Sidney Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne on 6 and 8 November 2017 and three more tracks recorded at The Domain on 17 November. In February 2017, Midnight Oil announced The Great Circle World Tour from the Sydney Harbour. The tour was the band's first in over 15 years, commenced in Sydney, travelled to 16 countries, completed 76 performances in six months and concluded at The Domain in November 2017. Jeff Jenkins from Stack Magazine called this a "re-formation that didn't suck" saying Midnight Oil had "lost none of their power and passion". Adding "This 26-song set is both a celebration of arguably our greatest band, and also a reminder to maintain the rage”. Personnel Midnight Oil Peter Garrett – lead vocals Jim Moginie – guitars, keyboards, vocals Bones Hillman – bass, vocals Robert Hirst – drums, vocals Martin Rotsey – guitars Additional Musicians Jack Howard – horns, keyboards, backing vocals Yirrmal – vocals Charles McMahon – Didgeroo Jeremy Smith – French Horn Michael Waters – Trombone Track Listing 1. Intro 2. Armistice Day 3. Reveille 4. Redneck Wonderland 5. Read About It 6. Lucky Country 7. Warakurna 8. Hercules 9. Truganini 10. Section Five (Bus To Bondi) 11. Stand In Line 12. Short Memory 13. Treaty 14. US Forces 15. Kosciuszko 16. The Dead Heart 17. Beds Are Burning 18. Don't Wanna Be The One 19. King Of The Mountain 20. Wedding Cake Island 21. Power And the Passion 22. Forgotten Years 23. Best Of Both Worlds 24. Only The Strong 25. No Time For Games Version Control There are CD, DVD, and bluray versions of this. I have the bluray. Amazon has it, but I think I got it from importcds, which is a little cheaper. The CD version has more tracks from other concerts; the bluray only has two bonus tracks that aren’t from Sydney. The Concert It’s bluray video, DTS-HD audio, but the surround is “just” crowd noise in the back. The first chapter is a short documentary. The most important factoid is that Moginie has a severely sprained hamstring, and has to play from a sitting position. Also, “Reveille” is just a short bugle piece from Jack Howard. “Armistice Day” From Place without a Postcard. There’s a protrusion from the main stage into the crowd, and Garett starts out there wearing a hoodie. Behind him are Moginie seated on the left, Rotsey, and Hilman. It’s an outdoor concert. Hirst is in the back; a large section of a steel culvert is part of his drum set. Shots from behind the crowd of the stage with the city in the background at night are shown frequently – very cool. Too large screens either side of the stage, plus a third one in the middle of the audience for the benefit of those in back. This is from their third album, and it’s pretty punk-rocky. “Redneck Wonderland” From Redneck Wonderland. From one of their more recent albums (well, released in 1998)More of a rocker than the first one, and the crowd sings along from the back. Garrett has retreated from the runway and the hoodie is off. There’s synth coming from somewhere, but I don’t see the keyboard guy yet – might be from Moginie. “Read About It” From 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. From their 1982 breakout album, I’d say. Moginie starts it off with guitar solo. Better than average crowd vocals – makes the surround worthwhile, actually. “Lucky Country” From Place without a Postcard. Another punky early one, but Moginie adds some reverb, and Garrett with some indecipherable vocals. Crowd sings the chorus in back. “Warakurna” From Diesel and Dust. Back in the 80’s again, and it starts off with synth again. Hirst plays hard. “Hercules” From Species Deceases. Rotsey and Moginie both get guitar solos. “Truganini” From Earth and Sun and Moon. I don’t know if this is their last great album, but it’s the last one I have. “Section Five (Bus To Bondi)” From Head Injuries. Their second album, so back to the early days. Seems a little pedestrian just when things started cooking. “Stand In Line” From Head Injuries. Nice bass line, the guitars seem almost superfluous. Garrett goes spastic, and then Moginie with essential guitar solo. “Short Memory” From 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Piano from Moginie to start. Hirst comes up front with a mini-drum set (one drum, one cymbal, and a tambourine – he mostly plays with one stick and sings. Moginie switches to synth, Rotsey with guitar solo, then Moginie piano solo. Garrett plays air guitar and air piano. “Treaty” Yothu Yindi cover. With Yirrmal on vocals and this is your chance to find out what a didgeroo is. All the guitars are acoustic. “US Forces” From 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. OK, I think this qualifies as a big hit song. The audience certainly knows it well, as they are singing the whole song at least as well as the band. Well better, really. “Kosciuszko” From Red Sails in the Sunset. Hirst is still up front, and singing lead. Well, so is the crowd. Hirst returns to his main set to finish up. “The Dead Heart” From Diesel and Dust. Ok, this is awesome. Absolutely the high point of the concert. Great song, the crowd sings the backing vocals, great visuals, a horn section that appears back left, and above all, a didgeroo. The video clip does not do justice to the very talented crowd vocals. I guess you need the surround for that. “Beds Are Burning” From Diesel and Dust. Another great song. The didgeroo is gone, but the horn section is still with us. “Don't Wanna Be The One” From Place without a Postcard. After hanging out with the aborigines for a stretch, they’re reverting to their Sydney roots again, which is too bad really. Not a bad song at all, but it stops a great run. Moginie on keyboards, Rotsey with guitar solo. The crowd seems to think it’s just fine as they sing along from the rear. “King Of The Mountain” From Blue Sky Mining. Pretty much my favorite MO song, “My Country”, is on this album but it’s not on the set list unfortunately. This will have to do. Anti-mining songs just never go out of style, apparently. “Wedding Cake Island” From Bird Noises. Another relatively early work. Power And the Passion From 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. This would be a good song to start off another run with. Great aerial view of the venue with Sydney in the background. The horn section is back. Garrett has a drum solo and this is where we get to find out what that section of culvert is there for. “Forgotten Years” From Blue Sky Mining. The horn section is still with us and Garrett takes another trip out the runway. End of set. “Best Of Both Worlds” From Red Sails in the Sunset. Encore. Garrett rambles all over the stage while singing, with more horns and a Rutsey solo, crowd with backing vocals. “Only The Strong” From 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. First bonus track – still in Sydney, don’t see why it’s not in with all of the rest. Moginie with lots of reverb, crowd with lead vocals again, Garrett backing from the front. Rutsey takes a trip out to the end of the runway with Garrett. “No Time For Games” From Bird Noises. Second bonus track, and once again I think the crowd knows the song better than Garrett. More reverb from Moginie – Garrett plays air guitar behind him while he is playing. _______ Even though I also have several of their middle-years albums, the classic Midnight Oil album for me is the compilation 20,000 Watt R.S.L. The set list here has more songs from early albums that I could do without, but it’s still a pretty close match. The audio quality was also great, especially for an outdoor concert. As for surround, I normally wouldn’t give a point for just crowd noise in the rear, but these are the best crowd vocals evah. Music – 3 Sound quality – 3 Video presentation – 3 Video quality – 3 Surround – 2 (+1 for crowd vocals)
This was a surprising one for me. After Peter Garret had been a member of federal parliament for a number of years, he shook off the burden of all that negativity and the band got back together for a tour. For those interested in checking out the band here is the Midnight Oil Album Thread we did a little ways back. It is interesting from an Aussie perspective to see the international viewpoint. I suspect in Aus that a lot of the songs seen as lowlights, or pauses in momentum would be considered highlights to some degree. Much like Inxs, the Oils had a long history in Australia before their international success, that essentially came with the album Diesel and Dust. Although I do enjoy that album these days, and the Oils album thread introduced me to their later work, I personally prefer the pre-Diesel and Dust Oils, and most of my friends back in Oz would also. As for the bands best albums, 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 is an absolute classic and anyone who says they like Midnight Oil needs that album. Red Sails In The Sunset is also an excellent album, but the band were starting to move in other directions. Diesel and Dust is undeniably a great album and I believe the bands biggest seller. The albums prior to 10-1 are very good albums, but essentially the band was still trying to get their sound captured in the studio, and like many bands that excel live, they never quite captured that sound. Place Without A Postcard is an excellent album, but one can hear that the production is a bit more raw, and the band doesn't quite get represented as best as it could be. As for this bluray. It is an excellent concert, and the band play and sing and perform a lot better than I assumed they could at this later stage in their lives. I guess the years in parliament left me feeling that Garret was probably passed it, but they perform really well, and the show is totally engaging as a concert from this band. For anyone who hasn't seen it, the best Oils on dvd is (from my perspective) Oils On Water. This was a special promotional concert that some lucky winners got tickets to from Aus radio station JJJ (triple J) and the show was performed on Goat Island in the Sydney Harbour. It was simulcast on abc tv and JJJ and I saw it as it happened (and taped it on my vhs ) The show was played in 1985 when the Oils were at their peak really, as a live band , for me at least, and was made on the Red Sails In The Sunset tour. Also on the disc is Saturday Night At The Capitol, which was recorded just as 10-1 was released. If @riskylogic hasn't got this one I would love to go through it for you all. Armistice Day is an excellent document of this great band, that also happens to be in top quality video and audio, which is where it stands above Oils On Water and Saturday Night At The Capitol. both those shows are excellent, but the audio and video quality aren't bluray spec quality. ---------------------- For anyone interested the Best Of Both Worlds dvd is hard to get, but there is one copy on discogs for about $27 Midnight Oil - Best Of Both Worlds
INXS - Live Baby Live. I have only a casual interest in INXS. Shabooh Shoobah is the only album of theirs that I have listened to more than a few times. I also recently picked up the 30th anniversary edition of Kick, which also has an Atmos mix - so I've listened to that several times lately. Unfortunately, Shabooh Shoobah isn't represented on the set list at all. There's lots from Kick though, and the songs from that album were the highpoint for me. I thought the concert got off to a great start with "Guns in the Sky" and "New Sensation", and "The Devil Inside" was a great finale and the high point of the concert for me. But in between the songs started to all sound the same to me. In other words, boring. The video quality is excellent, especially for 30 year old concert. I don't know if it really needed to be to be UHD though - seems like normal bluray video. The concert is also a great spectacle - Hutchence is a show all by himself, and the huge crowd (not as big as Green Day though) is really rocking the whole way through. The surround mix isn't discrete like Kick was, but it definitely sounds better in surround, and the 7.1 mix is the best of all. Nothing special coming out of the ceiling speakers though. Music – 1 Sound quality – 3 Video presentation – 3 Video quality – 3 Surround – 2 I'll be on the road for the next two weeks, so no surround for me until next month. However, I do have a few stereo-only videos that I'm taking with me to watch on my laptop with headphones. Since this is the Australia page, the duo from Melbourne is up next.
Midnight Oil Best of Both Worlds Live album by Midnight Oil Released 5 April 2004 Genre Rock Length 135 min (DVD) / 72:42 (CD) Label Midnight Oil / ABC Music Producer Keith Walker / Justin Heitman / Jim Moginie Best of Both Worlds is a DVD-Video release of two significant concerts performed by Australian rock band Midnight Oil. The featured concerts are Oils on the Water (from 1985) and Saturday Night at the Capitol (1982). Best of Both Worlds was released in 2004 by Triple J as part of their Live at the Wireless program. It won at the 2004 ARIA Music Awards for Best Music DVD. Oils on the Water Oils on the Water was staged on 13 January 1985 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Triple J, Australia's publicly owned youth radio network. This concert was performed on Sydney's Goat Island for a small audience of competition winners, and was simulcast on ABC-TV and Triple J. This concert is included on the DVD and also as a bonus audio CD. Track listing "Best of Both Worlds" "When the Generals Talk" "Minutes to Midnight" "Sleep" "Only the Strong" "Short Memory" "Kosciuszko" "US Forces" "Jimmy Sharman's Boxers" "Back on the Borderline" "Tin-legs and Tin Mines" "Don't Wanna Be the One" "Power and the Passion" "Read about It" "Harrisburg" "Stand in Line" Saturday Night at the Capitol An incendiary show from 1982 at the Capitol Theatre, Sydney, shot for the band by award-winning filmmaker Dave Bradbury on 27 November, 1982 for ABC radio station Triple J. Track listing "Only The Strong" "Brave Faces" "Short Memory" "Knife's Edge" "Power and the Passion" "Armistice Day" "No Time For Games" "Quinella Holiday" "Lucky Country" "Don't Wanna Be the One" "Burnie" "Powderworks" ------------------------------------------- For those interested in checking out the band here is the Midnight Oil Album Thread we did a little ways back. Oils On Water has been a favourite for a long time. It isn't the fact that it is state of the art hi tech audio and video, it is the concert itself. It was something a little different. The band playing with their backs to the Sydney harbour and ships and such going passed, and people in boats watching from the harbour. The band absolutely firing on all cylinders. A small but wildly enthusiastic bunch of Oils fans there for the special occasion, and quite frankly the nostalgia of having seen it live, in time, on the simulcast does help a lot also. So Oils On Water to me is an essential piece of the Midnight Oil history. Saturday Night At The Capitol is an excellent show also, and you can tell that the band is in a different environment. This was another JJJ event, but I honestly don't remember what the event was. This is a solid rock concert, and not quite as polished as the Oils On Water event. Either way, to me this is an essential Midnight Oil dvd set. For the record we have the two concerts, and also a cd of the Oils On Water show included. Ok, amazon has it for about $40 https://www.amazon.com/Best-Both-Wo...idnight+oil+dvd&qid=1595185428&s=music&sr=1-3 The ABC (Australian Broadcasting Commision) music shop says that you can download it from Itunes, and I know some folks like doing that, so here is the link to the ABC music shop Best of Both Worlds Midnight Oil Ebay actually has a few available starting at pretty good prices, but i haven't inspected the condition listings Midnight Oil Best Of Both Worlds Dvd | eBay Discogs actually has 7 copies from about $17 Midnight Oil - Best Of Both Worlds Disc 1: Saturday Night At The Capitol / Oils On The Water DVD Oils On The Water [DVD] Introduction Best Of Both Worlds When The Generals Talk Minutes To Midnight Sleep Only The Strong Short Memory Kosciuszko US Forces Jimmy Sharman's Boxers Back On The Borderline Tin Legs & Tin Mines Don't Wanna Be The One Power & The Passion Read About It Harrisburg Stand In Line End Credits 1985 ABC Intro 1985 ABC Intro Oils On The Water [The Rehearsal Tapes] — Audio Only Jimmy Sharman's Boxers Lucky Country Tin Legs & Tin Mines Don't Wanna Be The One Power & The Passion Read About It Harrisburg Stand In Line Saturday Night At The Capitol [DVD] Only The Strong Brave Faces Short Memory Knife's Edge Power & The Passion Armistice Day No Time For Games Quinella Holiday Lucky Country Don't Wanna Be The One Burnie Powderworks End Credits Saturday Night At The Capitol [The Truck Mixes] — Audio Only No Reaction Section 5 (Bus To Bondi) Somebody's Trying To Tell Me Something Run By Night Disc 2: Oils On The Water, The Goat Island/Triple J Anniversary Concert CD Best Of Both Worlds 4:05 When The Generals Talk 3:35 Minutes To Midnight 3:48 Sleep 5:06 Only The Strong 5:41 Short Memory 4:51 Kosciuszko 4:25 US Forces 4:08 Jimmy Sharman's Boxers 6:28 Back On The Borderline 3:05 Tin Legs & Tin Mines 4:57 Don't Wanna Be The One 2:59 Power & The Passion 6:25 Read About It 4:10 Harrisburg 3:00 Stand In Line 6:00 So lets have a look at this here rock show We have DD 5.1 and DD stereo. Oils On Water We open with a bit of a history JJJ, with some footage and reasonable surround sound interest. That lasts about one minute forty five. Peter Garrett opens up giving tribute to JJJ for making it possible for Aus bands to survive, and he is not exaggerating. Best of both worlds kicks in. What a great place for a concert, with the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the background. This is actually a very good 5.1 mix. The guitars are for the most part either side and the band is augmented with a small horn section, mixed in the rears. The video is actually very good, particularly for an old tv broadcast. Certainly not bluray quality, but clear, with only a slight grain to it. When the Generals Talk comes in, and that was a big track in Aus at the time. The band look like they are having fun too. This mix is very good. Rob Hirst is a very solid Drummer and sings the lead vocal here. Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey have their guitars either side. Moginie will play some keys in the show as well. Peter Gifford plays the bass, with some good sub assist. He also sings bvox. Minutes to Midnight comes in. I am really enjoying this mix. It must be a while since I watched this. The acoustic guitars play off each other in either side. Peter Garret is still the same unique lead man, doing whatever he wants with no inhibitions, and making his political statements. Sleep has Moginie on the piano left side. Rutsey still on the guitar right side. Gifford is on either a Warr or Chapman stick... that two handed bass with 8 or 10 strings. The horns are back, but they're up front this time. This is even better than I remember . I love this show, the video is excellent, the 5.1 is excellent and it is one of the great concerts.... yes, you really need to have this if you like Midnight Oil. Only the strong slowly raises in atmosphere. Then punch and we go. These guys were so tight back here. Garret does his unusual dancing. This must be the best concert ever given to a tiny crowd... bloody marvelous. Short Memory comes in, one of the best songs of the eighties for me. Moginie is on the electric piano again. Kosciuszko comes in... the biggest mountain in Aus if I remember rightly. The guys are playing a lot of Red Sails tracks, because ot was the nee album, but it is a great album, so it works for me. Garret notices the war ship? going passed... Garret introduces US Forces. The mix isn't static. Instruments seem to be mixed slightly different for each track but based around the same general soundfield. Jimmy Sharman's Boxers is truly a classic Oils track ... perhaps it means nothing overseas but it is pretty significant in Aus. As the night starts to draw in, the atmosphere is thick. The horns come back out for this one, and the magic track comes to a crescendo. Back on the Borderline from the Head Injuries album shows how good some of the earlier Oils tracks are. The wonderful Tin Legs and Tin Mines from 10-1 comes in with Moginie's piano across the middle. Now it's dark and the lights of Sydney are on the background. I don't wanna be the one starts, from the Place Without a Postcard album. Moginie on the organ this time. The mix is a little more up front here This show has a lot in common with U2's red rocks. Similar great looking location, very similar video picture, very similar year recorded.. Power and the Passion, the song that gave the band the big time break through in Aus. Probably the only negative on the whole show is Rob Hirst playing the first part of the drum break on this track on the three electric drums above his kit. The horns come in for the big finish, front and rear. Read About it is a classic and comes in with that great opening chord riff. Garret jumps into the crowd and dances and sings with them..... an elongated pause and smash back into it. Great stuff. We get the obligatory good night. Harrisburg starts with some synth noises, Garret is holding a flare. Moginie on the piano and organ. A short track making a statement. Stand in line brings back the rock, from the Head Injuries album. A guy from the crowd gets on stage and he and Garret have a bizarre dance off. Yea, even after all these years, I still love this. The video quality is very good. Very similar in quality and definition to red rocks. There are many parts of the show that have really excellent 5.1, and some parts are fairly typical concert mix. I think it is worth getting this just for this hour and a half of power and passion. Saturday Night at the Capitol. We open with the band backstage. This opens with Only the Strong. We have Rotsey playing the rhythm guitar front left and Moginie putting the effects on on the right side. This is a different dynamic. Indoors, much larger crowd. The video here looks really good actually. Perhaps being indoors it is a more controlled environment. Another JJJ special, again acknowledged by the band. Brave Faces starts up, from Place Without a Postcard. A solid song the mix is the same. Hirst is such a slid drummer. Rotsey plays an effected lead break. Moginie still on the right side. Short Memory again in a different setting. Piano on the right. Rotsey is just left of front left. Really solid sub on the bass here. This is a young crowd. A synth plays an eastern type riff centre, but feeding to the rears. The piano break is right side. Knife's Edge from the Bird Noises ep. Both guitars spind to be just wider the the front left and right, nice wide sounding field. Solid uptempo rocker. I'm not sure if the Diesel and Dust fans from overseas would recognise this band. Power and the Passion. Some guy annoys Garret, and he grabs him by the collar and tells him all about it. Garret is a big lad. Hirst does his drum cameo and Rotsey and Moginie add sfx that come in either side. Gifford's bass is really solid. No horn section, but the guitarists do a great job of the ending. Armistice Day comes in, in its eerie glory. Garret starts the second verse with a megaphone. The guitars sound really nice in the 5.1 here. This track is from Place Without a Postcard. No Time for games from the Bird Noises ep. Both these shows are rock shows, but slightly different flavours. Probably the only criticism of this one I can find so far is the audience is almost mixed out of the audio.... which has pluses and minuses really. More people get on the stage and Garret is more tolerant of them because they aren't problematic, he escorts them nicely back to the crowd while continuing singing, after having a bit of a dance with them. Quinella holiday.... a Quinella is a horse bet where you get the first and second place. There is an edit here, because the whole show isn't included. From the Place Without a Postcard album. Another nice 5.1. Lucky Country also from Place Without a Postcard. Again this is a worthwhile mix. Really enjoying revisiting these classic Oils concerts. The obligatory goodnight. I Don't Wanna be The One Another excellent version and another good mix..... it is just so odd seeing the crown bouncing up and down going bonkers, but you can rarely hear them much. Burnie another from Place Without a Postcard. A more mellow track with a thoughtful lyric and delivery. We get quite a few of those slo-mo video inserts here. Another good mix. Powderworks from the debut album. A rawkus punchy rocker. Guitars either side. In the bonus features there is a short intro with a guy talking about the Capitol theatre... nothing amazing. But... We have four extra tracks, one of them the essential Run By Night. These are just audio tracks in stereo. Well that was a pretty intense 2 or 3 hours. Certainly a nice revisit. Oils On Water is the complete show, the Capitol show is edited. It was probably filmed or edited to fit into a particular tv time slot, but nonetheless it is a worthwhile watch. Both shows have songs where the surround is excellent, and the guitars, or guitar and keyboard are spread wide to the sides. They also both have songs where there is a more front of the room sound. I hope I managed to communicate that. The video for the Capitol is probably a little better than Oils On Water, but both are very good quality. To me the real thing here is how much do you like the Oils, and where do you come in. I could probably understand someone that only came on board with Diesel and Dust not being super into these early shows. They are a great live band anyway, but these tracks have a sort of hard rock, almost punk edge, that the later music doesn't. If you like things a little more raw with your rock music, and Beds Are Burning was too smooth for you, perhaps you need to step back in time to 1982 and 1985 and hear the band in their pre-fame form. I personally like both sides of the commercial line that the band were on, but my favourite thing they ever did was Oils On Water, because it represents my favourite two albums so well. 10-1 and Red Sails in the Sunset. I think this set is very worth tracking down if you like the Oils, but I would also say that if you like the band the Armistice Day bluray that risky reviewed is also very much wroth getting. Capitol covers Place Without A Postcard and some early version of a couple of 10-1 tracks. Oils On Water covers 10-1 and Red Sails really well, and Armistice Day covers their whole career really well, and has the benefit of being recorded specifically for the format. Anyway, I hope that is helpful to any Oils fans out there that haven't seen these two shows. Oils On Water Short Memory Stand In Line https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c3X0OlVjuE&list=PL4AD87E05E406A94B&index=16 Saturday Night At The Capitol Power and the Passion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHUOu5MRg8o&list=PL92319EECC1754042&index=5 Powderworks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LogqbxpCFcc&list=PL92319EECC1754042&index=12 I did notice a couple of the youtube vids are out of sync, the dvd is certainly not out of sync.
Toward the Within Live Performance by Dead Can Dance Released 24 October 1994 Recorded November 1993 Genre World music, neoclassical dark wave, gothic rock Length 67:56 Label 4AD, 4AD/Warner Bros. Records Producer Brendan Perry, Lisa Gerrard Toward the Within (1994) is the first official live album of Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard's group Dead Can Dance. It contains 15 songs, of which only four appeared on their previous albums, and two of which were later re-recorded and included on Lisa Gerrard's first solo album, The Mirror Pool. The others previously existed only in live performances and unofficial bootlegs, but were not officially released until Toward the Within. Along with Perry and Gerrard were a number of musicians who had performed with them on other occasions. Toward the Within was recorded in one take in November 1993 at the Mayfair Theatre in Santa Monica, California and was released by 4AD as an album and a video (VHS and LaserDisc) a year later. It was the last major event to take place in the Mayfair Theatre before it was severely damaged in the Northridge earthquake in January 1994 and had to be closed indefinitely. The video was filmed by producer Mark Magidson, known for his work on the 1992 film Baraka. It contains interviews with Gerrard and Perry, as well a music video for "Yulunga (Spirit Dance)", composed of clips from Baraka. Personnel Brendan Perry (voice, percussion, guitar, flute, yangqin) Lisa Gerrard (voice, yangqin, percussion) Lance Hogan (guitar) Andrew Claxton (keyboard, percussion) John Bonnar (keyboard, percussion) Rónán Ó Snodaigh (percussion) Robert Perry (percussion, flute, guitar) Track Listing 1 Opening Credits 2 Rakim 3 Song Of The Sibyl 4 I Can See Now 5 American Dreaming 6 Cantara 7 The Wind That Shakes The Barley 8 I Am Stretched On Your Grave 9 Desert Song 10 Oman 11 Gloridean 12 Tristan 13 Sanvean 14 Don't Fade Away Version Control While the CD functions as the soundtrack to the video, neither contain the entire show. The CD lacks "Gloridean" as well as the song played over the ending credits of the video, while the video lacks "Persian Love Song" and concert footage of "Yulunga (Spirit Dance)". In 2001, Toward the Within was re-released on DVD and included in the box set Dead Can Dance (1981-1998). In addition to the original content, the DVD release contained a few extras: a discography; music videos for "Frontier", "The Protagonist" and "The Carnival Is Over"; and a chapter from Baraka titled "Calcutta Foragers/Homeless", which is set to Dead Can Dance's "The Host of Seraphim". In 2004, the DVD was released in a stand-alone package. I have the DVD and a Japanese SACD; the latter has far superior sound quality. I used to have the laserdisc which starts out with the "Yulunga" video and then proceeds to the concert. There are used copies of the DVD out there. Discogs. The Concert We’ve got VHS video with a 4:3 format and Dolby Digital Stereo. “Rakim” Seems to be a very small venue – they don’t show the crowd. Gerrard starts out on the yangqin (a Chinese hammered dulcimer), and we also have three percussionists, and two keyboard players. Perry starts out with lead vocals – the lyrics aren’t in English – it’s either an ancient language or gibberish. Then Gerrard comes in with other-worldy background vocals, and Perry switched to singing in English. Skippable interviews with both Gerrard and Perry are at the end of the chapter. “Song Of The Sibyl” From Aion. Synth and Gerrard vocals start it out. She is so amazing. Perry with background vocals; he also has a mandolin-like instrument that he strums briefly. “I Can See Now” Perry with acoustic guitar and vocals, also second guitar (Robert Perry, I think). Also synth and just a little percussion. Gerrard sits. No interview at end. “American Dreaming” Perry still playing acoustic with lead vocals, but with electric bass and lots more percussion backing. Synth also, Gerrard still sitting. More interview. “Cantara” From Within the Realm of a Dying Sun. The instrumentation sounds exotic, but I guess it’s all synth plus some percussion. It’s hard tell because everyone but Gerrard is in the dark – she’s got some finger cymbals. Eventually Gerrard lets loose, damn. Perry helps out with the percussion. The DVD is a little better than this: “The Wind That Shakes The Barley” Folk-song cover. Gerrard proves she can sing lyrics. She’s singing solo, but there’s an echo. “I Am Stretched On Your Grave” Irish ballad that appears on Into the Labyrinth. Now it’s Perry’s turn. He has just a little backing percussion to start, but a synth with lots of bass comes in too “Desert Song” Gerrard on the yangqin again, Perry with finger cymbals and vocals, some synth and lots more percussion. Hogan on guitar over on left “Oman” Starts with another barrage of percussion, Perry with lead vocals, and synth-strings. Gerrard just contributes a little extra percussion. “Gloridean” Appears on 1994 Lisa Gerrard solo album The Mirror Pool. Gerrard takes back over on vocals. Synth and tympani backing. The three percussionists surround Gerrard and contribute some backing vocals. It again sounds like another language, but reportedly it’s not really language at all. In the interview after the song, Gerrard explains that she just “lets the language grow by itself”. “Tristan” Gerrard vocals and synth follows. “Sanvean” Also appears on The Mirror Pool. Synth leads off and Gerrard fills in with vocals. “Don't Fade Away” Now we’ve got both Perrys with acousttic guitars and with Brendan lead vocals. Another folksy song. Synth joins in. Pretty anticlimactic ending. _______ DCD are one of my favorite bands, but this video is rather disappointing in a number of ways. First, the video and audio quality reveal it’s VHS origins.. Second, it’s not their best material: “Cantara” is a stone cold classic DCD song, but much of the rest of seems a little experimental. While DCD have always been percussion heavy, this set is even more so. Third, Perry and Gerrard more or less take turns playing – it’s almost as if they had already embarked on their own solo careers . Since it is their only concert video, if you are a serious Dead Can Dance fan, you simply must have it. Otherwise, maybe not. Music – 2.0 Sound quality – 2 Video presentation – 3 (The Lisa Gerrard vocals are amazing) Video quality – 1 Surround – 1
