I loved the way the band worked togetherhow each member lifted every other, and how each member excelled during solosbut I was most impressed by the locked-in rhythm section, and especially Pedro Martinez on congas. His hands turned into light, racing across the conga heads, speeding away from everything elsethe stage, the room, the cold nightwhile remaining right on time.
Gordon Sell PR has added a new client to its already impressive roster. Proclaim Audio of Durham, CT, is absolutely new to me, but I will take the opportunity to get to know the company during the Home Entertainment Show.
The Magico Q1 two-way monitor, first seen at the California Audio Show earlier this year, will make its New York debut during the Grand Opening of the new EarsNova showroom at 3 East 28th Street, in Manhattan.
Just this morning, I was thinking about the Magnetic Fields, and specifically about how I haven’t really enjoyed their work since 1999’s inspired 69 Love Songs. While i had plenty of fine moments, I can’t stand to listen to it anymore. It strikes me as mawkish and false. Distortion bothered me from the very beginning. There was nothing to hold on to. And though I’m mildly interested in the new one, Realism, I'm not excited enough to add it to “the list.”
In our May issue (see “The Entry Level,” page 47, or just click right here), I discussed the Music Hall USB-1 turntable ($249), Audioengine 5 powered loudspeakers ($349/pair), HiFiMan HM-602 portable music player ($439), and meatloaf (probably around $30 for all the ingredients).
I remember, fairly clearly, the events which led to this particular column. It was a chilly winter evening, late January or early February, and the girls and I had enjoyed a quiet, lazy day. We were now on our way home from a quick trip to Trader Joe’s. I was riding in the backseat of Natalie’s Honda (she’s got a motor back there, too), Nicole was in the passenger seat. The conversation turned from music to food.
In an article titled, "This Boot Was Made for Jazzin'," found in our April 2007 issue, Thomas Conrad tells us that today's most important European jazz musicians are coming from Italy. It was in that article that I was introduced to the young wonders, saxophonist Francesco Cafiso (18), and pianists, Giovanni Guidi (22) and Alessandro Lanzoni (15). These young men live within a musical landscape nurtured by guys like Gianni Basso (75) and Renato Sellani (81), who, according to Conrad, are "sounding better than ever." I'm not quite sure why, but it thrills me to know that such language, art, and life are being shared between people separated by so many years. Perhaps I see it as some evidence that time is only time. And what does that mean to me? Again, I don't know.
Back around Christmastime, when everyone around me seemed to be receiving iPods and gift certificates to the iTunes store, I thought I should give my loved ones The MP3 Talk. Now, John Atkinson, has prepared another version of The MP3 Talklive and in color with all sorts of cool graphs and stuff!
Lately, I’ve been listening almost exclusively to CDs and CD players. It hasn’t been bad at all. In our December issue, I’ll talk about the Emotiva ERC-2 CD player ($449); in January, I’ll compare the Emotiva to Michael Lavorgna’s longtime digital reference, the original Sony Playstation 1 (typically $15$75, used); and, in February, I’ll listen to NAD’s C 515BEE ($300), the disc-spinning counterpart to that company’s awesome C 316BEE integrated amplifier.
It’s been the perfect time for me to listen to CD players because my old band, The Multi-Purpose Solution, is reuniting to play a show this Friday, November 4, at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, NJ.