{"id":659,"date":"2010-11-20T14:57:10","date_gmt":"2010-11-20T22:57:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mikevarley.com\/?p=659"},"modified":"2011-01-03T16:05:54","modified_gmt":"2011-01-04T00:05:54","slug":"travelogue-buffalo-september-2010","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/?p=659","title":{"rendered":"Travelogue: Buffalo, September 2010"},"content":{"rendered":"

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9.25.10<\/p>\n

The city of Buffalo sells beautiful urban decay to the viewer at bargain basement prices. \u00a0Opulent homes from times gone by serve now as apartments and winter furnace nightmares. \u00a0It attracts one set of unique people and retains another unique set of people. \u00a0It transfers its grief to its sports franchises and is more fiercely proud of its deficiencies than even New York City. \u00a0All the charm is there for those that wish to view it: grandeur\u00a0and failure in splendid juxtaposition, like a pressed flower, like a typewriter, like Buffalo.<\/p>\n

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Niagara Falls<\/strong><\/p>\n

I saw Niagara Falls for the first time on Saturday. \u00a0We visited the U.S. side only, as I still have yet to renew my passport. \u00a0It was an impressive sight, blessedly unique to the natural marvels of our nation. \u00a0Its discovery by fledgling Americans came at a time in history when nature seemed limitless and designed to drive commerce. \u00a0The casinos, outlet malls and 30 dollar, natural wonder fun packs are the centuries-old ripple effects. \u00a0It was an enjoyable time for sure – a pleasant diversion and the hydroelectric backbone of the Northeast – but as a shrine to the beauty of nature, it’s most effective as a cautionary tale.<\/p>\n

Of Montreal<\/strong><\/p>\n

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On Sunday, Erin, Angie Blair and I went to see Janelle Monae and Of Montreal at the Town Ballroom. \u00a0Janelle Monae absolutely stole the show with a combination of funk, soul and style. \u00a0Barring something unforeseen, she could easily unseat Lady Gaga\/\/M.I.A. as the top act in left-of-center pop within two years time. \u00a0The only question is if she desires that mantle.<\/p>\n

This is the 4th time I’ve seen Of Montreal and the second best of all occasions. \u00a0I am fully versed in all but two of their albums and understand they have a predisposition toward playing newer material. \u00a0I also know that in recent albums the show theatrics have become a much larger component of their performance. \u00a0In this respect they did not\u00a0disappoint, with costumes ranging from terminator-like battle robots with Japanese Goldfish heads to a five-man,\u00a0psychedelic\u00a0caterpillar creature saddled for Kevin Barnes to ride. \u00a0At the end, feather cannons\u00a0volleyed\u00a0white delicates into the crowd to the tune of “Reject the Frequency,” notably surreal as the song has always reminded me of snow.<\/p>\n

My gripe with the performance stems from the larger question of the role of a music entertainer. \u00a0What is the proper balance between giving the audience anticipated experience and giving them new experience? \u00a0Add to that a release date five days prior to the concert and you’re giving your faithful precious few days to “study” the material, so to speak (without resorting to illegal download, that is).<\/p>\n

Speaking from the “studied” experience of the previous album, “Skeletal Lamping”, and the novel, in-venue experience of the new album, “False Priest”, I can say that both works are not the type of music that grabs you at first listen and forces you to dance. \u00a0This is somewhat problematic, as these albums constituted 75% of the show. \u00a0In regarding these two albums similarly, yet knowing only one, the difference was striking. \u00a0Having that anticipatory feeling for songs off “Skeletal Lamping” that aren’t immediately effecting granted them a power they otherwise lacked on first listen. \u00a0They became imbued with the power to make me dance.<\/p>\n

And I think dancing is ultimately what an act the caliber of Of Montreal wants to achieve. \u00a0Unfortunately, the middle third of the show was uninterrupted new material, each song too complicated on first listen, too focused on stagecraft and not crowd engagement. \u00a0By the time older material was revisited, the effects were\u00a0noticeable, like starting an old mower. \u00a0Songs that would have boiled over 20 minutes earlier simmered as the crowd found its way back to mass consciousness. \u00a0The show picked up from there in a big way and I eagerly awaited the encore, hoping they would delve into material from 4-5 albums ago – music \u00a0noteworthy as compelling both immediately and upon further experience. \u00a0Instead, they took a surprise turn into the Michael Jackson catalogue, immediately danceable but a dash to my expectations.<\/p>\n

The role of the artist is to give the public something they didn’t know they wanted. \u00a0The role of the entertainer is to satisfy craving. \u00a0Music, beyond any other form, is a craving-based art. \u00a0It’s why sex and drugs are so intimately tied to it. \u00a0Of Montreal has expanded the discussion with a superb stage show, but the foundation still rests on twelve notes and a drum beat. \u00a0In the future, I hope they’re more tactical in set list distribution, giving us time-released hits of\u00a0familiarity.<\/p>\n

Gandhi<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Saturday night, I watched Gandhi for the first time and enjoyed it immensely. \u00a0If I can get a hold of a Gandhi biography anytime soon I expect he will become a new obsession of mine. \u00a0It is not his works that fascinate as much as the complexity of his character. \u00a0Are practices as\u00a0puritanical\u00a0as his necessary to move hearts so profoundly or were they the quirks of a man driven with no hope for satisfaction? \u00a0The movie alone cannot answer this for me.<\/p>\n

Geneseo<\/strong><\/p>\n

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I went down to Geneseo for the fourth time since I’ve graduated to visit Dan Dezarn, Kim Keil and their son, Nolan. \u00a0Each time I visit there’s a feeling of discomfort that evolves but never disappears. \u00a0It’s a home I can never return to even as I stand on its soil. \u00a0The fond memories are too sweet to endure.<\/p>\n

Erin and I went out with Kim and Dan to their Yurt twenty minutes from campus, which is ready for full-time living after nearly three years of construction. \u00a0The amount and specificity of work that’s gone into pulling the project together is beyond the capabilities of 99% of Americans and well beyond my capacity for expression.<\/p>\n

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\r\n\t\t\t9.25.10 The city of Buffalo sells beautiful urban decay to the viewer at bargain basement prices. \u00a0Opulent homes from times gone by serve now as apartments and winter furnace nightmares. \u00a0It attracts one set of unique people and retains another unique set of people. \u00a0It transfers its grief to its sports franchises and is more […]<\/span><\/a>\t\t\r\n\t\t<\/div>\t\t\r\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

9.25.10 The city of Buffalo sells beautiful urban decay to the viewer at bargain basement prices. \u00a0Opulent homes from times gone by serve now as apartments and winter furnace nightmares. \u00a0It attracts one set of unique people and retains another unique set of people. \u00a0It transfers its grief to its sports franchises and is more […]<\/p>\n\t\t

\r\n\t\t\t9.25.10 The city of Buffalo sells beautiful urban decay to the viewer at bargain basement prices. \u00a0Opulent homes from times gone by serve now as apartments and winter furnace nightmares. \u00a0It attracts one set of unique people and retains another unique set of people. \u00a0It transfers its grief to its sports franchises and is more […]<\/span><\/a>\t\t\r\n\t\t<\/div>\t\t\r\n\t\t","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[55],"tags":[86,89,87,70,88],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/659"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=659"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/659\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":660,"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/659\/revisions\/660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=659"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=659"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikevarley.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}