An astonishing couple of days that I’m still in total disbelief that even happened let alone twice and the fact that I got to attend both is nothing short of a miracle so I am so grateful for. Sad for the reasons behind the events but something wonderful truly came out of it.
Concert for Japan w/ John Zorn, Mike Patton, Sonic Youth and the return of Cibo Matto & more –
Miller Theater at Columbia University – March 27th – New York, NY
This was an event that was put together in just a matter of days and look at what these amazing people were able to accomplish in that short amount of time. Sadly, what necessitated the event, Tohoku, the devastating earthquake & tsunami that devastated Japan a few days earlier, what heartbreaking and tragic, however after hearing of this benefit concert I couldn’t have been more excited and it was for such a great cause, and inspiring how quickly they took action.
It was organized by the legendary saxophonist and composer John Zorn, who has lived and performed in Japan and for decades has collaborated with, promoted and released albums by Japanese musicians.
The program, rounded out by Yoko Ono and Sonic Youth, reaffirmed longstanding ties between what were (in the 1970s and ’80s) known as New York’s downtown improvisers and their Japanese counterparts and co-conspirators. Sold out in two hours, the concert was also broadcast on Japanese television and to Columbia students. It raised $34,000 for Japan Society’s Earthquake Relief Fund.
The musicians have stationed themselves where genres blur: noise, jazz, rock, funk, electronics. The program juxtaposed straightforward songs with open-ended improvisations. And, from Sonic Youth, an amalgam of both, as terse, punky verses dissolved into scrabbling, squalling, ringing guitar passages, cataclysmic and monumental.
The show fittingly started with Zorn and a trumpet player, introducing the event and playing an incredible but brief set. That’s what made this so cool, was their were no egos, no silly headliners or bullshit, just great music for a great cause, each playing brief sets. It was amazing to see not only the camaraderie between them all, but you could detect long establishing relationships, personally, professionally, musically, etc.
So much so that alot of the acts were very incestuous, using each other’s members, or whoever was available to get this done.
Next up was something that outside of the reasons we were all here, was something I had completely different (and admittedly selfish) reasons for being so excited for – the return of Cibo Matto.
One of favorite bands of the last 15 years and perhaps ever, who broke up over 10 years ago, and I never got a chance to see them.
I have been fortunate to see their two core members Miho Hatori and Yuka Honda perform separately in different projects (of course never breaching the Matto catalog) and it was kinda understood that their was some bitterness that would prevent them from ever reforming as Cibo Matto. Their was so hope on the horizon however last Fall, when for Honda’s 50th birthday they played a brief set at a private party. So when something this tragic happens, it puts things into perspective of what truly matters. Motivated by the cause and surely wanted to represent Japan as they are both Japanese obviously and having just played together a few months prior, the choice to play publicly though for the first time in over 10 years was an easy choice I’m sure. And boy was I happy they did.
Though the set was only three songs, it was three songs more than I had ever seen live, and I had been waiting soooo long for this.
Setlist:
Birthday Cake
Le Pain Perdu
Aguas de Marco
They were keeping it tight at this place, as their was a strict understanding of no pictures/cell-phones, that when I went to move my phone from one pocket to the other for comfort reasons, their were two ushers on me like stink on shit, really intense.
Up next was Mephista — Sylvie Courvoisier on piano, Susie Ibarra on drums and Ikue Mori on laptop (who’s in a legendary band with Mike Patton and John Zorn called Hemophiliac) — played the concert’s most abstract set. Their intent improvisations had Courvoisier plucking inside the piano when she wasn’t’t riffling impressionistic chords and ostinatos against the whistles, clanks, rustles and crackles from Ibarra and Mori. Their pieces had a moment-by-moment suspense; each plunk counted.
Speaking of Patton (and if you know anything about me, I’m totally one of those Patton is God dudes haha) was backed by the redoubtable pianist Uri Caine in old Italian pop tunes — sung with tongue-in-cheek melodrama — like those on Patton’s 2010 album, Mondo Cane. Caine’s opening solo took Honeysuckle Rose through kaleidoscopic transformations, from ragtime to free-jazz clusters.
The guitarist Marc Ribot accompanied Akiko Yano, one of Japan’s best-known rock and jazz singers. With Yano on piano, they performed a playfully splintered version of the Gershwins’ Our Love Is Here to Stay. But their second song was serious: Funamachi (Waiting for the Ship), which is based on a folk song from the region of Japan hit hardest by the tsunami. It had a sea-chantey-like drive and a chorus that was a fervent exhortation: to persevere.
Probably the act people seemed to be most familiar with (besides Yoko Ono of course) were NYC noise legends Sonic Youth. One of my all-time favorite bands, and again I know what we were here for, and I’ve seen this band all over the world, but their is just something about seeing them in NYC that is always so special.
Setlist:
The Sprawl (Daydream Nation)
The World Looks Red (Confusion is Sex)
Hey Joni (Daydream Nation)
Shaking Hell (Confusion is Sex)
Zorn returned, and unexpectedly, gave one of the concert’s least noisy performances. His Aleph Trio — with Trevor Dunn (from Mr. Bungle) on bass and Kenny Wollesen on drums — delivered a Latin-flavored, two-chord vamp as Zorn revealed his melodic side: bluesy, agile, genial, dramatic and thoroughly swinging.
If their was a headliner, it would be the final act Yoko Ono, and whatever your opinions of her might be, it did feel appropriate. I don’t necessarily have a negative preconception of her and if fact think its pretty cool that at her age she is still getting up there and doing it.
However the results are certainly left up to interpretation.
Starting with this totally weird song, seemingly called It Happened, I was a bit put off as it seemed the first thing out of her mouth was not the current tragedy and why we are all here, but the tragedy she is known for, the death of John Lennon. Think about it, everything you have ever heard or seen her do as long as you have been alive, all seems to stem from that and her perpetuation of it is what defines her and her in her first song, was she really recounting the death of John Lennon? here?? – I don’t know, it was totally weird. She was flashing peace signs as she entered and exited.
Seemingly fragile at first, she was anything but as she strutted across the stage and turned into an electronically looped banshee, and was in a world totally only known to her.
just to enjoy and support a great cause, while seeing an incredible night of music, in the perfect building for it. The Miller Theater is inside the Columbia University campus and so I had some fun strolling the grounds before and after the show.
To Japan with Love w/ Yoko Ono & Sean Lennon, Cibo Matto, Patti Smith and surprise guest Lou Reed – Le Poisson Rouge – March 29th – New York City
What’s this?, no Cibo Matto for over 10 years and now I’m seeing them twice in three days? I could never get tired or used to that.
This, in a series of events around NYC to aid the relief effort for Japan, though she performed at the quickly assembled hodgepodge just a few days earlier (see above) was totally curated by Yoko One and you could totally tell. Her tastes and John Zorn’s vary quite differently as gone were the younger, noisier acts and in place where heavy-hitters of old.
As I mentioned, one act that remained was Cibo Matto,(and for good reason, they are Japanese and three of its members make up Ono’s live band, one namely her son Sean). What a difference venues make, and maybe they got some rust off with their show a few days earlier, but where as the Miller Theater revue was extremely formal and sedate on all accounts, now we were in a small club in the West Village, now I was at the very front of the stage, dancing my ass off right in front of Miho Hatori, and they went ballistic!
Setlist:
Birthday Cake
Le Pain Perdu
Aguas de Marco
Beef Jerky
Sugar Water
This was a show like I had heard about, and they were fucking shit up and got to a play a longer set with adding two extra songs from the show two days ago, and were even joined by Honda’s husband Nels Cline of Wilco, who is a total badass.
Up next was Patti Smith, a NYC institution that embodies an event like this, and someone that I have always wanted to see, but not a member of the tribe enough to every really do anything about it. I have nothing but respect for her and at times have been fascinated by her. I was at CBGB’s on their very last night, but like most people I was standing outside with a droves of people and watching what I could as they kept the door open. She also represents a demographic that I’ve always been quite annoyed by, a bygone generation before me, that seems to think they can affect real change by reading poetry and eating vegan food and high on pseudo-intellectualism.
Now I was gonna have a chance to decide for myself, and let me tell you something, people in NYC freaking love Patti Smith.
Peaceable Kingdom
Beneath The Southern Cross
Ghost Dance
Pissing in a River
People Have the Power
Kinda douchy, but clearly proud Sean announced, “Yoko Ono has entered the building!’” Within seconds, she appeared, singing that crazy fucking acapella song It Happened just like she did at the show a few days ago. Her delicate singing abruptly morphed into screams of terror and convulsions, and scared the shit out of me and everyone there, just so bizarre and almost humorous, but yet anything but.
She told a funny story about how the next song Mind Train originated. It was about 16 minutes long and she mentioned that John Lennon insisted on playing it for an unnamed famous musician, and Yoko expressed her regret of having this person endure the whole 16 minutes. Another special guest, Antony Haggarty, came crooning along.
Yoko and Haggarty, who is hermaphroditic is speech and appearance performed this cringe inducing song, I Love You Earth because as Ono explained it, “The earth is angry now and needs to hear it” – ummm…sure. Yoko had Haggarty sing it, but then the two of them got into an I-Love-You fest that just wouldn’t’t quit.
Everyone sang and spoke something heartfelt and respectful in dedication to the people of Japan. All night the show had been directed like a conductor by Sean, who kept hinting/hoping of a final/major guest appearance that deemed too unpredictable to guarantee was now getting excited and now it was a reality as he could now announce the next person walking up to the stage, that being Lou Reed. Holy fucking shit –
Sean stood between Lou and Yoko, watching in awe, as if he’d bought a ticket to the show himself and forgot that he was in it. He seemed amazed at organizing and pulling this off and how spontaneous, chaotic, and enthralling it felt.
Sean jokingly introduced the final song as a great one written by Neil Diamond…Give Peace A Chance.
While it seemed a bit silly, it was designed as a simple song to reassemble everyone who had performed tonight to sing a song all together and it was the most practical and somewhat perfect.
As I was exited the venue, Yoko was handing everyone a cool little gift:– a piece of sky (jigsaw puzzle piece) in a drawstring pouch with a card inscribed:
The sky is cracked now above Japan.Let’s come together in our dreams to heal.
A dream you dream alone is only a dream But a dream you dream together Is reality.
I love you!
Yoko Spring, 2011
Roy Turner
Eric Sanders
Shawn Brackbill
Bob Gruen
