james blake

as part of chris' birthday present, i got us tickets to see james blake. he played at the commodore on sunday and it was an incredible show. i was worried i would be (once again) let down by a live show as i inevitably compare it to the studio recorded music; however, i was pleasantly surprised and very impressed; he is extremely talented. i tend to question artists that rely so heavily on so-called 'electronic aids' and wonder what they would sound like if all of the digital effects and equipment were taken out of the picture. i am positive that even without all his synthesizers and distorted sounds james blake is a fantastic musician (and thus, those are simply the cherry on the cake of his raw talent). he is a well taught pianist and has a voice like none other. he also appears to be eloquently spoken and rather intelligent - all things that gain my respect.

"Sometimes it's just the only way that you can achieve a certain sound. I can sing, but I like to treat my vocals anyway. I can't distort my voice without the use of a distortion unit, but that doesn't mean I'm doing something unnatural."

i also like when people (especially famous people) in the "alternative" or "underground" music scene confess to liking things that are slightly more mainstream just like most of us do but don't always like to admit to.

"And I'm a sucker for hearing recognizable samples just as much as anyone else and I'd like to put my own spin on that. Maybe it's cathartic, too. Like I remember when "Ignition (Remix)" by R. Kelly came out and just being absolutely embarrassed to love it. For me, it's an exorcism of all those old melodies and voices."

who doesn't secretly love it when ignition gets played in da clubzzzzz? ;)

this is a cover of joni mitchell's 'case of you' that he played for his first encore. and this is the first song chris ever showed me of his and will always be one of my faves.

he (& i) will be in montreal very soon!