edinburgh gig

[platypus]

Hello Chan & hello all cat power fans,

It sure was enchanting to see you play live, but I'm afraid this is me in rant mode (What a way to say hello).

I thought the Edinburgh audience was one of the most disrespectful I've ever had the misfortune to mingle among (and I'm from Edinburgh). The vibe was totally ruined for me by the constant nattering of fakers & hypocrites.

Why pay to see someone perform if you're only gonna to talk over them. Sorry I had a BAD day at work and was looking forward to tonight, to unwind & be transported.

I hope you had a cool time in Edinburgh Chan & please forgive me my murderous tongue. And may I say...the way you drunk from that bottle of whiskey was positively sexy.

I did have a cool night, and you were spellbinding, shame there wasn't a hex on the audience.

Ok Rant over!

[r s]

I couldn't agree with you more, the audience was generally horrible, especially the man on the balcony who shouted "you could sing it better" whilst chan was talking about "names."

There'll be an interview with chan from last night posted on the forthcoming webzine, Eating Paper.

It was a surreal night.






Sittin' on a ruin.

[toiletgraffiti]

i also agree.

i also thought it was rather odd for so many people to leave before the end of the show - i was standing at the back...why buy a ticket?

i enjoyed the gig a lot,,,first time ive seen cat power live and it was pretty much what i expected. i thought the last song she played with the guiatist (dont know what it was called) was fucking amazing...her voice is just incredible.

[cortezthekiller]

Why are you sticking up for Chan?

I paid £12 for that gig and it was abysmal.
She was taking the piss out of everyone that had paid good money for a ticket. I was tempted to walk out myself.

I expected to hear her play some beautiful songs from her beautiful albums but instead we got a drunk, unfunny ,embarrassing, selfish mess of a woman who could barely play and hold a tune.

There was nothing wrong with the audiences reaction when you consider what they were they for, and consider how disappointed they were. I'm still angry at her today. Chan is a very talented lady on record but she needs to sober up and realise how much she is ripping off the gig going public.

What a spoiled little brat.

[toiletgraffiti]

had you seen her before or did you read any live reviews of hers before going? i did:

http://www.cluas.com/music/gigs/cat_power.htm

http://www.stayfun.co.uk/live/catpower150603.shtm

sound familiar? i was in no doubt that the gig wouldnt go as normal...fair enough you paid £12 of your obviously hard earned cash but if you knew anything about her you would have known what to expect.

[stewie]

Yeah, there sure were some assholes in the audience. Sure, Chan drunkenly rambling through the Perry story might not have been great entertainment, but it's fucking insensitive to laugh and heckle when she's pouring her heart out. Still, quite a lot of people at the front were telling them to shut it.
Gig had its moments - seemed to be going well with the whole Sittin' on a Ruin thang. Chan's whole "sexy" voice thing was great. I'd love to hear her do a proper soul or r 'n b record. She'd totally wipe the floor with Norah Jones et al.
Interesting choice of material, including a WIll Oldham cover. But it was frustrating too. Would have been nice to have heard a bit more. Her voice wasn't in top shape, but she sounded pretty good. I think a big problem was the ludicrous 10pm curfew. What is this shit? 10pm? And £3 pints? I've never been to the Liquid Rooms before, but it's a dive, and not in a good way like the Barrowlands or Sleazy's. No wonder bands stick to Glasgow. THey get a good crowd and a good atmosphere. Only good Ed venue is Queen's Hall. Chan played Mono in Glasgow last year, which is a nice cafe bar type place, with band in tow. It was the much better gig and she had plenty of time to do her thang. It had plenty of messy and faltering moments, but Satisfaction, COlour and the Kids, Good Woman etc were amazing.
I'm reviewing the gig for Is THis Music? so I got in free. I can understand people who feel they didn't get their money's worth though. It's fair enough to say you shouldn't expect a slick show, but that shouldn't let her completely off the hook. I don't think she was taking the piss - she seemed as disappointed as much of the crowd at the bullshit curfew. I mean, I've been to classical concerts that have gone on well past 10 - but maybe she should do something about her stage fright. She's not an especially shy person otherwise.
I thought there were some absolutely beautiful moments - just a shame there weren't more of 'em. A good part of the blame has to fall on the venue's shoulders. It's not a council byelaw to stop music after 10 - the Edinburgh fest wouldn't exist if that was the case.

[goodnews]

i had read reviews prior to shows even our local free newspaper The Metro (i'm from Glasgow) dropped in the 'psychological' reference...i had also read the review of the australian show that ended up a bit of a fracas...

maybe i wasn't drunk or something (as i was driving ) to appreciate the whole amateaurness of the show...i've seen many bands live in many venues ....this has got to be up there with the worst...and there is not many

my understanding is to go and appreciate a live act and see them perform live , especially songs i appreciate so much. The continual stopping and explaining and adjusting guitars and equipment ruins that whole experience of enjoying the song ...geez, dare i say it....all the way through....

....i was on the balcony next to the guy who was howling at the same time chan was, any other time i would have asked the guy to stop, but my ambivalence won through....

....i'd do a steely dan chan and stick to the studio albums!

[baskin]

im pretty sure the song she finished with was an otis redding cover that she did at the end of both her scottish shows last time round as well but i dont know the name of.

[goodnews]

I'm sure the last song was Otis Redding's 'these arms of mine'

[r s]

that's the song! you have both made my day, thanks very much.

[bravenger]

I came out of that gig actually feeling very sorry for Chan Marshall, and not because of the crowd reaction. I actually thought she got off very lightly.

I was really glad to hear she was performing solo when the gig was announced, but watching her self destructing on stage like that, I prayed for the support of other musicians.

I heard she suffers from stagefright and clearly has unresolved issues. Maybe she should stick to the studio until these things are resolved.

By the way, I think the comments about the crowd and the venue were pretty unfair. The Edinburgh crowd can be pretty fickle and no it's not the greatest venue. However', I seriously doubt even the most up for it Glasgow audience would have universally taken that performance on the chin.

Infact, I think they would have been a damn sight more forthright in telling her she was just taking the piss!

[baskin]

I thought the crowd and venue were in some ways better than her last Glasgow gig at Mono. it had a really low stage, was really cramped, loads of people couldn't see and loads of people talked through it. also Glasgows too damn hip. too many people there go to pass judgement rather than enjoy.

[stewie]

That's true about the Mono gig - all those tossers at the back yakking throughout were really annoying. However, the low stage and everyone sitting down made for a nice atmosphere, one tarnished, admittedly, by the dicks at the back.
When a Glasgow crowd is in a good mood there's none better, but many do just stand and stroke their chins, as Franz Ferdinand have pointed out.

[DarkEyes]

what can I say, "Chan Marshall gives shambolic / beautifully rag-tag performance loved/hated by many"

everyone has heard about her shows being somewhat of a mess , i have no problem with this , hence i go and see her , if you think you might not enjoy it because of this , just do not go...

[cortezthekiller]

ok so she has a reputation for being shambolic and sloppy - but does that make it acceptable?

Why doesn't her manager (presuming she has one?) or at least a close pal take her aside and say "Chan, you are acting like a complete radge. You are making a fool of yourself and your fans are deserting you. Get off the booze and give them a proper show"

Chan steaming of her tits - 50 % happy with show
50% unhappy with show

Chan sober as a judge - 100% happy with show.

This is going nowhere....... all I'm saying is she needs to get a grip of herself. The fans are being ripped off.

[Bright Eyes]

Don't ever use the term "Rag-Tag" again. It's embarrasing.

[toiletgraffiti]

for christs sake it sounds like a lot of people out there want to go to a gig to listen to an exact version of the album!?

what would be the point in that? im not for one minute saying that her gig in edinburgh was the best thing ive ever seen but it was certainly different and she did it her way...thats fine by me.

[cortezthekiller]

I didn't say I wanted it to be exactly the same.
It's very rarely a gig is like that anyway.

But I wanted to go and hear some songs that I enjoy.

Instead I got shambles, followed by drunken cover versions, mixed with really long boring boring boring stories.

lets agree to differ.

I'll not go and see her live again but will still listen to her lovely records.

happy easter to all the Christians.
have a good weekend to the rest.