Les Rallizes Dénudés: ’77 Live (1991)

When people write about bands or artists that cross genres, they usually denote it by using some kind of punctuation, typical a slash. The near-mythical Les Rallizes Dénudés are that slash, the punctuation between their unique and mesmerizing blend of psychedelia, pop, and garage rock. Pierce the layers of squalling feedback and noise and you can hear the bubblegum pop and 60s R&B the legendary Takashi Mizutani used as a springboard to carve out one of the most interesting niches in music. To cap off Live Month we’re going to spend a week with the band, who never put out a proper studio album, only live, archival releases starting with ’77 Live, their blazing set at the Tachikawa Social Education Hall in Tokyo.

ChrisApril 21, 2025April 22, 20251 Comment

CD, Vinyl

Neil Young: Live At Massey Hall 1971 (2007)

Immersive sound, incredible songs, hearing an artist work their way through soon to be classics…listening to Neil Young in this context was revelatory the first time I hear Live At Massey Hall 1971 when it was first released. It was the first Neil Young record I ever bought, and the album that made me a fan despite knowing so many of his songs via the osmosis of his omnipresence on radio thoughout the 70s, 80s, and even the 90s. It’s a fragile album of immense power, for me one of the pinnacles of the singer-songwriter experience. Passionate, political, personal…all the “P”s are represented on this classic document.

ChrisApril 16, 20251 Comment

Vinyl

The Doors: Live In Detroit (2000)

The WiFi in Aruba is spotty at best, so Live Month will be abbreviated this week as we dive into Archive week. The May 8, 1970 Detroit show at the Cabo Arena has long been considered one of the top performances from The Doors. One of their longest set ever performed, it’s long been considered “the” live recording of the band to get. Rhino finally collected the show in its entirety back in 2000 on CD and last year put out a gorgeous box set on vinyl for RSD. I had only known it in digital form thanks to the band’s Bright Midnight Archives Concerts series, where it lived with two sets from Aquarius Theater in 1969. But now Live In Detroit is here, so let’s get into it…briefly, before the terrible WiFi cuts out again.

ChrisApril 15, 2025April 15, 20251 Comment

Vinyl

Joy Divison: That’ll Be The End (1980)

Some people believe the only “real” representation of the late, great Joy Division was their live shows, that the production meddling of Martin Hannett smothered their intensity into an otherworldly cold sheen on record. I love the production on those records, and while we can debate until the cows come whether that singular production was a help or hindrance to the band’s longevity, there’s no denying that live they were a different, more primal beast. That’ll Be The End documents their penultimate performance at the Ajanta Cinema Derby on April 19, 1980, less than a month before Ian Curtis’s tragic suicide. Like all of their live recordings it’s rough, not meant for official release, but unable to suppress the energy and control the band could hold over an audience.

ChrisApril 11, 2025April 11, 2025Leave a comment

David Bowie: Olympic Stadium, Montreal 1983

I haven’t really written about David Bowie yet on this site. When it comes to my favorite artists I need time to really think about how I want to frame their work and its impact on me. Of how my understanding of them change and grow over time, sometimes making them loom larger, sometimes smaller. He’s one who over time has become larger and larger in my life, and his death in 2016 was a galvanizing moment for me. So I’ll get to Bowie proper eventually; for now though we’ll use the opportunity of Bootleg Week to discuss this document from his Serious Moonlight Tour, Olympic Stadium Montreal 1983.

ChrisApril 10, 2025April 10, 2025Leave a comment

Pink Floyd: Live At Wembley Empire Pool (1974)

To be clear, this is NOT the standalone release The Dark Side Of The Moon Live at Wembley 1974 that came out in 2023, which I THINK was taken from the November 15-16 shows and is just the Dark Side of the Moon part of the show. Live At Wembley Empire Pool is the full show (with a mammoth bonus up front) presenting to my ears Pink Floyd at their absolute best: this is not only my favorite live recording of the band; it’s grown to become my go-to album anytime I want to listen to Floyd – at least the post Syd Barrett era of the band. Full of gargantuan solos and massive jams that almost but never lose sight of the fantastic song structures the group were known for it’s a fascinating document of the band not only playing with established classics but exploring the breadth and scope of songs that would become classics on future albums.

ChrisApril 9, 2025April 9, 2025Leave a comment

Consuming the Tangible

We are what we consume

Tag: live