Ben Harper is a God

2006-10-24T15:59:17+02:00

If Ben Harper was a preacher, I would go to church every Sunday. A big church. More than 10,000 people were in Paris Bercy concert hall yesterday to listen to him. It began like I thought it would end: magnificently. Right from the start. He succeeded in keeping up the level for nearly three hours. Because Ben Harper is a real showman (he can raise the crowd in a couple of seconds), adding to the fact that he's an extraordinary musician and singer (he can sing without a microphone and still be heard in a 10,000 seat stadium).He's a magician.A couple of great moments:The song "There will be a light" sung by a full crowd, lighters everywhere. Shivering.The French flag on the giant screen and Harper starting "Get up, Stand up"... Political message? Kind of 70's atmosphere... GREAT ! Last album released:- Both sides of the gun. Buy it now ! ;-) His political songs are among the best. They are reminiscent of Dylan's or Joan Baez's commitment.

devendra banhart

2006-07-09T12:52:15+02:00

I was looking forward to this concert for a couple of months, ever since i heard Devendra Banhart's going to come to Israel. It's different here then in Europe or the USA, not all artists are willing to make the long trip into an unknown land small lend and there are always security issues and political issues and other reasons that make artists not want to come here, but this summer there were many American and European musicians performing in Israel, Depech mode which I wanted to see in concert since high school are going to be here next month when I'm already in New York, but I had the amazing compensation in this act, even though tickets were real expensive and I'm not really in the mood for crowded and loud events ever since my anxiety returned, I really wanted to go, in my mind I had a full evening set with me dancing like crazy on the front row, forgetting myself in the music, and living my old self, myself from about a year ago, edgy, fearless, fun.I don't feel myself in my writing now, that evening happened on Friday and by now I feel so different, totally different, like ages and ages had been passed and I recall that evening from a far away frozen memory rather then something that happened to me. I should have written it right as I went back home, but I didn't have the mood or energy and I just wanted to lay down then, and disappeared.He left for a wedding in Virginia on Thursday, taking the bike to a big trip for the first time, I still talked with him on Thursday as I was coming home from work and he was just getting ready for leaving. I knew I'd feel alone without being able to talk to him, and that I'll worry about him being on the bike for so many hours. My mind kept drifting to one of the scariest night of my life in which me and my ex were in the car back from Sinai, it was late, the road was very dark and parts of it were on the edge of cliffs, I wanted for us to stop, for my ex to sleep a few hours then go on driving, but he just wouldn't, he said he just wanted to be home already and though he's tired and feeling sick he rather go on driving, I was afraid to argue too much cause I was afraid he'll get angry with me. At about half way he started having a fever, we were in the car in the dead sea area and at some point, we slipped from the road and onto the gravel almost falling down a passive pit. But he still wouldn't stop, I remember perfectly how I felt, so nervous, so scared, and helpless. My job was to keep him from falling asleep, I talked to him constantly, and asked him questions abut nothing for hours and hours, eventually I made him sing songs with me so he doesn't crash.But also, I was half looking forward to spending a few days on my own, having time to get on with packing and taking care of errands and being with friends without feeling bad about him waiting for me at home, and of course, heading to that concert. My 2 best female friends also had tickets and we planned to go together, my sister and her boyfriend were also going. I had this evening of love, friends and good music, a grand finala to my Israel time planned for this weekend, It's so sad that those planned grand moments never really works.My parents came over that evening, they were staying in an apartment of a friend in Tell-Viva, she went on vacation and they wanted to be around in case my sister needs them. She's not feeling so good lately and dread being on her own. So, at around 7:00 they came to my apartment to pick me and my sister up for dinner, they invited a friend of mine that was also in the apartment. It was actually a pretty nice evening, I like being with them around other people, I like how nice and fakely open they become in front of a stranger. We eat, I eat too much, as I always do in family dinners. Then we headed out to the car.My back was aching since Thursday, maybe from packing, maybe from stress maybe from too little exercise and sitting down a lot at work lately. It was getting worst and worst as the day passed and I was walking to a meeting, then back from a meeting then around the apartment. I felt tired and a little anxious and very much alone.My parents car wasn't where they parked it, My dad said he think his car was toed, I knew where that parking lot where they toe cars into were, I've already been there twice once with my ex and once with a friend, in both times they were parking very close to where the parking lot was, and so I showed my parents the way, I wasn't sure i remembered but there it was, right by the beach on Ha'Yarkon street, My dad payed the fine and we were all making jokes about it, but it was slightly upsetting and I know that part of the reason why my mom and dad were so calm about it was that my friend was there. After we released the car, my sister suggested we'll walk to where the concert was, she had it with my parents and thought this would be better. And so we did, it was farther then I remembered it to be and the more I walked the more aching my back was, I didn't even take my backpack that evening trying not to over load my back, but even just holding the tiny kimono fabric purse that I've never used before was painful, even lifting my hand to pull my hair off my face or pay for a bottle of water and hand out the money hurtled.Finally we made it, by then the last thing I wanted was to get in there and see a concert, I wanted to just skip it, go home, but I also wanted to go, I wanted to feel like the person I once was I wanted to be swept away by the music and out of my fears, out of myself, and just be that inspiration dancing having fun, fearless. I could hear the base lines of recorded music from within, and it send me to slight anxiety, but I went in anyway. It was so crowded inside, we couldn't really see anything, my sister's boyfriend suggested that we tried getting closer to the stage, with my back, I couldn't really push cause every time my shoulder or back touched something it hurtled more. Eventually we found some way to the side of the stage, we were right on the front line but on the very edge of it, there were metal bars keeping equipments and what later we found out was a smoke machine and I tried to sit on them, it took me 4 attempts to lift myself up there, and watch Katamin do 5 quite beautiful songs, I love them usually but then I just wanted the main act to begin. Correction - I just wanted the main act to end, I was looking on my watch after Katamine was done and tried to calculate how long do I need to stay there for.Eventually they began to play, my anxiety got a little worse as well as my back, I feel so let down, disappointed from myself, I thought of how just a year ago nothing would have stopped me from enjoying that concert, pain or anxiety or whatever, I would drink like mad then dance then come back home to my blog to excited and energetic to sleep and write an amazing blog entry about my amazing experiences. But now, I'm tired and sick and scared, not amazing anymore just a person who's getting old and scared and just ordinary, maybe even less then ordinary, cause right now, I just close myself in my apartment being fearful and tired most of the time. I thought "what if I'd never be able to enjoy live music anymore, what if I'll always stay like that from now on" And that made me force myself to stay through the entire first 2 songs. Then I told my sister I'm feeling too bad and I'm going home. I still don't know if what broke me was the anxiety or the pain or just the fact that I'm growing old.I call my other sister from the street and tell her to come and pick up my ticket so she can go in instead of me, she doesn't really feel like it, but eventually after I tell her the music was great, she comes. I meet her on the way and hand her the ticket.At home, it's still early, about midnight, the streets are still noisy with people parking to go clubbing and just random wonderers. There's music from the building next to mine, not too loud but my anxiety get worsen by that, I try to put on my headphones and concentrate on the audio book I'm falling in and out of sleep, every time wake up from some noise or change in the music. Eventually I break - I get up, close all the windows and turn on the air conditioning, I take half of one of those pills the DR. gave me in my last big panic attack. I go back to bed and read a book till I fall asleep.Shit! I hate myself so much, I hate how fear twist everything for me, how when I'm like this I'm willing to give anything in the world just to make it stop. How closed and scared and uninteresting this makes me.

Astonvilla at Trocadero

2006-02-13T23:25:00+01:00

On February 8 the French rock group Astonvilla (not the soccer team) gave a surprise concert on the Esplanade of the Palais de Chaillot (Trocadéro).

It was recorded to be broadcast on the French TV channel France 4 on February 24 at 8:50pm. Look for me "stage right", wearing an olive hat and lavender scarf!

As the group started singing, a few curious tourists gathered around to listen, although they probably didn't guess that this is one of the most succesful rock bands in France! Fans who happened to catch the last-minute announcement on the band's website took photos and cheered (clapping and yelling also helped everyone stay warm...a frozen wind that day!)

As it got darker a chilly rain began to come down (see the crew in the back holding a tarp over the drummer), but the concert continue, even going 45 minutes over the scheduled time (the band had a concert later that night at the Trabendo). What troopers! (having the Eiffel Tower sparkling in the background doesn't hurt the mood, either)Stay tuned for the location of the next "concert sauvage" by Louise Attaque scheduled to take place before the end of the month!

Last posts on concert

Ben Harper is a God

devendra banhart

Astonvilla at Trocadero