Thundercat

April 2023 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

Screenshot of the Irish National Opera’s trailer for Werther by There Stands the Glass.

Top Ten Albums of April

1. Tilo Weber- Tesserae

My review.

2. Zsófia Boros- El último aliento

My review.

3. El Michels Affair and Black Thought- Glorious Game

Roots-y.

4. Adam Larson- With Love, From New York City

My review.

5. Tee Grizzley and Skilla Baby- Controversy

Detroit lions.

6. Thomas Adès- Dante

Hell, purgatory and paradise.

7. Danish String Quartet- Prism V

Bach, Beethoven and Webern.

8. YoungBoy Never Broke Again- Don’t Try This at Home

Untold riches.

9. Brandee Younger- Brand New Life

Starting over.

10. Kiko El Crazy- Pila’e Teteo

Dembow frenzy.


Top Ten Songs of April

1. Shirley Collins- “High and Away”

Storm’s a-brewin’.

2. Margo Price and Particle Kid- “Hands on the Wheel”

I feel like going home.

3. Smokey Robinson- "Beside You"

Cruisin’.

4. Stik Figa featuring Blu and The Expert- "Uknowhut?"

What?

5. Killer Mike featuring El-P and thankugoodsir- "Don't Let the Devil"

Nobody speak.

6. MC Yallah- "No One Seems to Bother"

The truest type of world music.

7. Thundercat and Tame Impala- "No More Lies"

Truth.

8. Armani White and A$AP Ferg- “Silver Tooth”

Novocain.

9. NLE Choppa- "Talk Different"

Money changes everything.

10. Jessie Ware- “Begin Again”

Age of Aquarius.


Top Ten Concerts of April

1. Jean-Yves Thibaudet at the Folly Theater

My Instagram photo.

2. Adam Larson, Matt Clohesy and Jimmy Macbride at Westport Coffee House

My Instagram clip.

3. Willi Carlisle and Betse & Clarke at Knuckleheads

My Instagram photo.

4. John Mellencamp at the Midland theater

My Instagram clip.

5. Drew Williams, Seth Davis and Brian Steever at Westport Coffee House

My Instagram clip.

6. Booker T. Jones at the Folly Theater

My review.

7. Joseph Genualdi at Grant Recital Hall

My Instagram photo.

8. Anne-Marie McDermott’s master class at Grant Recital Hall

My notes.

9. Thomas Lacy at Southminster Presbyterian Church

My Instagram clip.

10. Nate Nall, Matt Hopper and Joey Panella at the Market at Meadowbrook

My Instagram photo.

The previous monthly survey is here.

May Flowers

Original image of fans at Rockfest by There Stands the Glass.

I probably won’t attempt to navigate the mayhem in an effort to catch Thundercat’s concert at the 2023 NFL Draft this evening.  The related sprawl extends the grounds of the Liberty Memorial on which I’ve attended more than a dozen festivals.  I (almost) miss hearing bands like Korn at the bygone Rockfest in the shadow of the Kansas City landmark.  Two miniature festivals are among  May concert recommendations for KCUR. 

Concert Review: Gorillaz at the Moda Center

Original image by There Stands the Glass.

Let’s get the most embarrassing bit out of the way at the top: this grown man paid $50 to attend a concert by a cartoon band on Wednesday, September 14.  But Gorillaz isn’t necessarily for the children.  In fact, the fabricated project is one of the best pop acts of the new millennium.

Having never witnessed a Gorillaz performance, I’d long been curious about the presentation.  Live footage of 12 flesh-and-blood musicians were projected on a pair of monitors on either side of a giant screen showing Gorillaz-themed animation at the Moda Center.

The amiable Gorillaz mastermind Damon Albarn interacted with his band and with virtual appearances by artists including Little Dragon, Slowthai and Thundercat.  Unfortunately, the in-person guest artists including Bootie Brown of the Pharcyde  and opening band EarthGang relied on tired clichés.

Enormously entertained but emotionally unmoved, I felt as if I were watching psychedelic variations of Tom and Jerry cartoons from a gargantuan couch with room for 14,000 people.  Members of the vast throng didn’t share my lackluster reaction.

Dressed as if a Hot Topic delivery truck had exploded inside the home court of the Portland Trail Blazers, fans with green hair wearing baggy pants and an inexplicable number of Korn t-shirts experienced a profound form of musical engagement that eluded me.