Thursday, April 9, 2009

Alexi Murdoch at El Rey



True to a man who had just spent a year in the Himalayas, Alexi Murdoch appeared like a spirit on the stage, fluid and intangible beneath the low glow of blue lights, which shined just enough to illuminate the outline of an emaciated figure – made more so by his skinny jeans and tight fitting long tee – and a beard as unkempt and as the hair atop his head. It was clear that Alexi had “lost all care for the things [he] owned,” and as such, was prepared to deliver a show devoid of both pretense and extravagance, in favor of one filled with soul and truth. He looked like a man who had just spent a year in the Himalayas, and he played like one too, endowed with a spiritual strength from the mountains that rose above his physical slightness.

He stood with his guitar as an extension of himself, and sang a mixture of songs from his upcoming EP/Album, as well as some of the more celebrated songs from TIME WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE.

Also as an extension of himself were his fellow band members (rhythm guitar, bass, percussion, keys/electronics/effects, and trumpet), whose individual instruments could hardly be separated as distinct parts of the whole. Like Sigur Ros, rather than layer harmonies one on top of the other or serve accompaniments to a simple melody, they created atmospheres and worlds where Alexi’s smooth and dark voice (a deeper version of Nick Drake) slipped in as undetected as the instruments. And the music emanated from them as from one source, organically flowing and building like a spring that starts from groundwater, which turns into a brook and then a river, culminates in a waterfall, and finally finds rest in its outlet, the sea. In that way, they seemed to “feel” the music rather than play it, which assumption can find support in the fact that their eyes remained closed 75% of the time, opening only slightly the other 25%, perhaps in order to verify that they were indeed on a stage in Los Angeles in the El Rey Theatre, as opposed to floating on a cloud somewhere in another dimension.

In general, Alexi stayed true to the arrangements that were laid down in the studio, but also showed his artistry in a reinvention of “Dream About Flying,” which took on a whole new rhythm and more intricate riffs on the guitar (he must have had time work on his skills during his sojourn in the mountains), and a more simplified version of “Orange Sky” that was perhaps even more fulfilling than the studio version, slowing down the tempo to allow every stroke of the strings, every beat, and every lyric glow in our hearts like a setting sun.

The new tracks, which will be released some time in the next two to three months, still have that Alexi flavor – the combination of haunting electronica and indie acoustic riffs, and of course, the pure and unmistakable voice of Alexi himself –, but he has moved into a slightly more upbeat and optimistic realm, while maintaining a few of those moments of awe or reverence that permeate his previous work. It sounds strange to say, but this new direction, especially as it relates to his finger picking on the guitar, points almost towards folk and bluegrass, in the same way certain tracks from Ray LaMontagne’s GOSSIP IN THE GRAIN do. Needless to say, it fits and works brilliantly.

The crowning moment of last night’s performance came during the encore, when Alexi performed his stirring rendition of “Orange Sky,” and the crowd, without being beckoned or called upon, joined him in singing the chorus: “my salvation lies in your love, my salvation lies in your love, my salvation lies in your love, in your love, in your love...” Incredibly, like Alexi’s voice and the musicians that made up his band, the crowd became part of the whole, in no way overpowering Alexi or the song, but becoming yet another element in the atmosphere. A subtle smile came across Alexi’s face and not so subtle smiles played on the faces of his fellow musicians, and it was clear we had all found salvation in each other and our love for Alexi and his music.



Douglas W. Bailey
dwadebailey@gmail.com

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

TIGER MUST BE RACIST


I watched a report on ESPN’s Outside the Lines yesterday (which seems to be good for stirring up tensions where there previously were none), in which several white liberals and two mediocre black golfers (Steven Reid and some obscure golf instructor) complained about the lack of African Americans on the PGA tour, which, as a professional association, can only consist of golfers who golf at a professional level (as opposed to mediocre).

Once again, whoever slapped this little production together decided to ignore all the other minorities that excel in the sport (as they do whenever they bring up the lack of African Americans in NCAA football coaching positions, hockey, lacrosse, synchronized diving, etc.) – Asians, in particular, have taken the tour by storm (Choi, Kim, Maruyama), and the Spaniards and Latinos have always made their presence felt on the leader boards of nearly every tournament on tour (Garcia, Ballasteros, Olazabel, Villegas, Cabrera). I guess their skin isn’t dark enough to warrant any mention; either that, or the mention of that many successful minorities on the tour would undermine the report’s claim that the PGA (and golf in general) is backpedaling in this, the Golden Age of Diversity (which is another way of saying the PGA is racist).

And conveniently, Vijay Singh is left out of the equation completely when the report mentions Tiger Woods as the lone African American on tour (ironically, Tiger doesn’t even consider himself African American, having coined the term “Cablanasian” to explain his racial heritage, which includes African-American, Native-American, Asian, and Caucasian ancestry). I guess when you consider that Vijay is from Fiji, the claim that he is not African American is technically correct. But I thought we were dealing with racism on tour, which has to do with the color of one’s skin, regardless of where or how they inherited that color, be it on an island, in the Far East, the Southern Hemisphere, or on real live African soil. Or does ESPN believe racism only applies to those of purely African descent (although I have a feeling the Chinese, Japanese, Irish, Poles, and Jews might not agree with that)? Maybe ESPN also had a hand in writing the L.A. Times article that claimed Barack Obama was not “authentically black,” seeing as they’ve also placed poor ‘ol Vijay into the same category.

But does all this talk about race really matter in this day and age? Especially in regards to modern-day sports? Julius Erving, the lone voice of descent on the show (which also means he was the lone voice of reason), suggested that “sports are a meritocracy that rewards those who succeed, regardless of their skin color.” Hmmm…what a novel concept! Does that mean the golfers who are on tour earned the right to be on tour because they are better than those who aren’t on tour? You mean Brian Whitcomb and Tiger Woods didn’t collude to hedge up the way for other aspiring black golfers to get their Footjoy’s onto the pristine fairways of the nation’s elite courses?

I have an idea: instead of wasting energy by trying to find others to blame for his lack of success on the tour (among the others he blamed was, shockingly, Tiger Woods for not using his influence to temper the flames of racism that rage among the PGA’s “powers that be”), Steven Reid ought to be working on his short game. After all, it was he who missed a 10-foot putt in a tournament on the 18th green that would have earned him his PGA Tour card; not Tiger Woods or the racist “powers that be.”

And instead of wasting money and energy on these haphazard featurettes, which seem to be little more than 10-minute nuggets of good old-fashioned propaganda, ESPN could spend it teaching and developing young black golfers, if they really were concerned about the lack thereof on tour. But ESPN is less concerned about the racial disparity in golf than they are about legitimizing their own network by pandering to the hyped-up, bloated reputation of racism in today’s society. By so doing, they give themselves a sense of morality that would otherwise not exist in this age of White Guilt.

So give yourselves a pat on the back, ESPN, for being champions of the cause, for putting Truth in its rightful place beneath the all-important virtue of Diversity, as you so often do.


Douglas W. Bailey
dwadebailey@gmail.com