NORA KEYES and guests @ Dream 21/01/05
Jan. 25th, 2005 12:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sharplittleteethCabaret is the new underground, I suspect. And after the recent Dresden Dolls tour, Melbourne got a second taste in the form of Nora Keyes and guests at Dream.
Of course, being Dream, we had to wait an hour and half past the advertised start time for things to actually start.
The acts, in order:
Dandelion Wine have lost a bass player and gained a violinist since I last saw them. Their sound now has a bit less funk, a bit more echoing, shoegazer noise. On the whole, it’s a change I like. The violinist’s classical-style solos added some nice texture and complexity to their swirly-hippy-goth sound. Best band of the evening.
Doktor Z, Vampire Ventriloquist. He was dressed up like an extra from the Transylvania Ball scene from Rocky Horror, his vampire puppet looked like something Syd and Marty Kroft would make, and he seemed to be miming (rather than ventriloquising) to some heavily vocodered voices. His jokes weren’t funny, and his timing was narcoleptic.
The Cawndawg: A guy with an acoustic guitar, a Southern accent, and a silly moustache. Sang songs about gays, orphan black babies and other stuff that was supposed to be offensively funny. Couldn’t help but think that South Park do it better.
Justice Yeldham: Noise artist. He miked a sheet of glass up to a string of effects pedals on his belt, poured KY Jelly all over his face, mashed his face against the glass, and made five minutes of furious noise. It was like a gigantic guitar solo, only without all those pesky notes. And at the end, he smashed the glass over his head. Intense. Loud. And actually pretty cool.
Singing Sadie: Think Shirley Temple gone Elegant Gothic Lolita. Black curls and a frilly satin dress. She sang 30’s tunes with raunchy lyrics, tap-danced and high-kicked and generally played the sassy 30’s broad. A bit sloppy and out of tune, but plenty of chutzpah.
Nora Keyes: Dressed like a widow from the 1920s, she sat alone behind her organ on stage that was completely dark except for a single red light underlighting her face. And she sang over a droning organ in a high, eerie voice that quivered and cackled and creeped people out. Reviews of Nora Keyes keep talking about witches and 78rpm records. I thought she sounded like one of those fortune-telling machines they used to have at carnivals, if such machines could sing.
Which all sounds really cool. In practice, I found my attention wandered after a few songs. And part of me grew really nostalgic for the long-lost days of the Paradise Motel.
Immaculata played last. It was late, and they had PA problems, and I’m not the greatest fan anyway. So we quietly made out leave.
I don’t know if these cabaret-style shows are the Next Big Thing in Goth, or just a curious side-show. They say variety is the spice of life. But surely then quality must be the vitamins and minerals?
Of course, being Dream, we had to wait an hour and half past the advertised start time for things to actually start.
The acts, in order:
Dandelion Wine have lost a bass player and gained a violinist since I last saw them. Their sound now has a bit less funk, a bit more echoing, shoegazer noise. On the whole, it’s a change I like. The violinist’s classical-style solos added some nice texture and complexity to their swirly-hippy-goth sound. Best band of the evening.
Doktor Z, Vampire Ventriloquist. He was dressed up like an extra from the Transylvania Ball scene from Rocky Horror, his vampire puppet looked like something Syd and Marty Kroft would make, and he seemed to be miming (rather than ventriloquising) to some heavily vocodered voices. His jokes weren’t funny, and his timing was narcoleptic.
The Cawndawg: A guy with an acoustic guitar, a Southern accent, and a silly moustache. Sang songs about gays, orphan black babies and other stuff that was supposed to be offensively funny. Couldn’t help but think that South Park do it better.
Justice Yeldham: Noise artist. He miked a sheet of glass up to a string of effects pedals on his belt, poured KY Jelly all over his face, mashed his face against the glass, and made five minutes of furious noise. It was like a gigantic guitar solo, only without all those pesky notes. And at the end, he smashed the glass over his head. Intense. Loud. And actually pretty cool.
Singing Sadie: Think Shirley Temple gone Elegant Gothic Lolita. Black curls and a frilly satin dress. She sang 30’s tunes with raunchy lyrics, tap-danced and high-kicked and generally played the sassy 30’s broad. A bit sloppy and out of tune, but plenty of chutzpah.
Nora Keyes: Dressed like a widow from the 1920s, she sat alone behind her organ on stage that was completely dark except for a single red light underlighting her face. And she sang over a droning organ in a high, eerie voice that quivered and cackled and creeped people out. Reviews of Nora Keyes keep talking about witches and 78rpm records. I thought she sounded like one of those fortune-telling machines they used to have at carnivals, if such machines could sing.
Which all sounds really cool. In practice, I found my attention wandered after a few songs. And part of me grew really nostalgic for the long-lost days of the Paradise Motel.
Immaculata played last. It was late, and they had PA problems, and I’m not the greatest fan anyway. So we quietly made out leave.
I don’t know if these cabaret-style shows are the Next Big Thing in Goth, or just a curious side-show. They say variety is the spice of life. But surely then quality must be the vitamins and minerals?
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no subject
Date: 2005-01-24 05:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-01-24 05:53 pm (UTC)double poos to dream for not having sense to schedule things and keep it running at decent times.
no subject
Date: 2005-01-24 07:49 pm (UTC)(Take II)
"I don’t know if these cabaret-style shows are the Next Big Thing in Goth, or just a curious side-show."
This cabaret thing seems to be the latest in a logn line of things that i think i've discovered all by myself, then realise it's just the latest trend that i've picked up on without realising.
I really enjoyed Friday night, especially Nora, Sadie and even Dr Z (though i do tend to favour style over quality). Nora Keyes might have been better at 10pm than 2am (or whenever it was) and in a place with chairs and tables and coffee.
no subject
Date: 2005-01-25 03:23 am (UTC)