Mood: In some ways great, in others, a bit confused.
Listening to: Meds by Placebo (Gotta get ready for Monday. I'll see them live if all works out!!!
)
Reading: House of Chains by Steve Lundin/Erikson. Hooray for Canadian fantasy authors!!!
Watching: Pride and Prejudice, the new version with Knightley and Macfayden...
Good, but very crazy week. Certain details I am not even going to get into. But I've done some fun studio work and I saw
RADIOHEAD live last night at the Sziget Festival, and it was mind blowing!
When the first notes of "Airbag" hit the airwaves as the overture to the whole show I knew I was in for a treat. Thom and the rest of the boys sounded better than dared to hope, the drum/bass rhythm section was amazingly tight and groovy, and they reproduced difficult songs like "Paranoid Android" essentially perfectly live. And on top of all that, after a long show, they played no less than five encore songs after the crowd screamed them back on stage. Thom Yorke sings so well live, its sickening... Yaaaaaaaay!
And all I can say is:
"In the next world war
in a jack knifed juggernaut,
I am born again.
In the neon sign,
scrolling up and down,
I am born again.
In an interstellar burst,
I am back to save the universe."
- from the song Airbag by Radiohead
***
I am back to update you on the
PLACEBO show!
Well, Brian and the boys started with Infra-red, which is a personal fav of mine, and all in all it was an impeccable, perfectly delivered rock show, the high points for me being Post Blue, Special K, and 20 Years. Everything sounded great, and I felt just two pangs of disappointment when remembering the Radiohead show two days ago. One thing is that Thom Yorke's band played a lot longer, and the other thing was that on Saturday, I felt like I was included in something special--being there and listening to Radiohead somehow became an experiment beyond simply being at a concert--the band made it into an EVENT with capital letters, creating music and sort of letting the audience listen in. There was magic.
On the other hand, Placebo was utterly professional, and while they did all the rocknroll gymastics including jumping of the drum set stand, and chucking guitars, it was somehow
colder, more detached--at least for me. This, however, does not mean that Placebo wasn't great. They were awesome and did all that can be expected of them. Radiohead simply went beyond my expectations. I think the difference can best be explained by quoting my friend Attila's words after the show--you see, Placebo was perfect and fun, but Radiohead, as Attila said "was beautiful".
The crowd during the Placebo show was, however, not nearly as perfect as the band.
Things went totally psychotic when the first song began, and for those of us in the hot-spot, close to the stage, the concert quickly turned into a stampede. People were going into panic around me, women being dragged out by their boyfriends on the edge of tears. I saw a girl who came to the previous concert but couldn't make it out of the crowd. It sucked. I myself had to rescue my friend, Judit. We were packed like sardines, and when people started pushing us, even I had to seriously fight to maintain my footing and I am a 210 pound male who works out and plays sports... It was freaky. I mean, for heaven's sake, people die at concerts this way! And if someone goes down, it's next to impossible to help him/her get up in the push. I guess we have no reason to whine though, as we survived fine, but I am still a bit angry with those stoned/drunk idiots who start this stage rushing stuff without thinking about how it feels for those who get stuck in the human wave near the stage, or get crushed against the fence (especially if they are 100-120 pound girls).
Alright, I had my rant. Luckily, even the crowds could not ruin the experience, it was a great show!!! And while I'm at it, let me finish this account with a song quote too:
You were mother natureīs son,
Someone to whom I could relate,
Your needle and your damage done,
Remains a sordid twist of fate.
Now Iīm trying to wake you up,
To pull you from the liquid sky,
Coz if I donīt weīll both end up,
With just your song to say goodbye.
My Oh My.
Before our innocence was lost,
You were always one of those,
Blessed with lucky sevens,
And the voice that made me cry.
Itīs a song to say goodbye.
-from Song to say goodbye by Placebo
Neither here nor there
Peaceful
It's a good read. 
Oh well, I've done some studio work this week, recorded some cool electric guitars for three songs, and was otherwise rather bored. I am excited about the upcoming Pepsi Sziget fest though. Radiohead and Placebo are coming, I can't wait... 
