Young Caruso: The Milan Recordings 1902-1903

Guess what? Recording technology 99 years ago was primitive. Despite the obvious limitations in sound fidelity, in some ways the unique “feel’ of older recordings can trump today’s slickly-polished Pro Tool records.

Such is the case with The Young Caruso, Songs and Arias: Milan Recordings 1902-1903 from Angel Records, an old vinyl I stumbled upon the other day.

The record is a document of the early recordings of Italian tenor Enrico Caruso. Born in 1873, Caruso was the eighteenth (yes, 18th) child of a poor mechanic. Despite his poor beginnings, Caruso grew to become an international star back in his day. Caruso’s 1907 recording of “Vesti la Giubba” was the first gramophone/phonograph to sell more than 1 million copies. Freddie Mercury of Queen was big fan of Caruso’s operatic singing style.

I was in a shitty/depressed mood when I put the record on, and listening to this distant sounding, century-old recording by a long dead tenor lightened my mood in a perverse, existentialist kind of a way.

Should you run out and get this record? Probably not. However its good background music and an interesting listen, even if just for the historical novelty of it.

UPRISING: Clark Graham

Clark Graham, the singer/songwriter and current resident of Los Angles, is performing songs off his upcoming LP around West Hollywood, along with fellow songwriter and transient Matt Moore (whom Graham met while hitchhiking from Phoenix to Jefferson City). You can hear some of Graham latest songs here: http://www.myspace.com/259133053/music/songs/Concrete-Rhythm-80388199

Live! GOBBLE GOBBLE

Glowing polymers of high molecular mass.
Acrylic exterior redesigns.
Pinball machines.
Electronic tribal spontaneity.
Sweat.

Do you like what is described above? Then you like GOBBLE GOBBLE.

How to describe GOBBLE GOBBLE? Think of the band as being a cross between the The Living Theatre and a mini rave freak-out. The bearded band leader, dressed in a polka-dot smock with angel wings, tortures his soundboard that makes high pitched quelling sounds against the backdrop of heavy electronic beats.
They played The Cobalt, a former punk music venue that has recently been renovated, power-washed and sanitized for the hipster masses. The Cobalt is located in Vancouver’s Chinatown, near a Chinese import clothing store on Main and 15th with a giant sign that reads 10 SHIRTS FOR $5. [Sidenote: After driving past this seductive sign for several weeks, I finally succumbed to the temptation and went in to buy 10 shirts. Turns out it was 10 baby shirts for $5. ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?! I PAID THREE DOLLARS IN PARKING!DAMNITALLTOHELL]

Back to GOBBLE GOBBLE. While the bandleader stayed onstage, two shirtless band members dressed in tutus danced amongst the small but enthusiastic crowd like crazed shamen. An array of musical and non-musical instruments made an appearance: frying pans, snow shovels, disco balls and tambourines were all used in GOBBLE GOBBLE’s aural assault. At some point I recall a string of Christmas lights being thrown into the crowd.

Verdict: Definitely worth the $10 price of admission. The show itself was relatively short: A little over 30 minutes. Any longer and the band members would’ve collapsed from heat exhaustion.

Photo by Steve Louie