Jump to content

2007 - Somerset House review @ MusicOMH.com


Blue

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 31
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Like so?

 

Otitis

 

Up at night, can't sleep

Walking round, can't eat

This thing has got me ill

This thing has gotten deep...

 

Deep in my ear canal

I hear reverberations

Deep in my ear canal

A throbbing sensation...

 

I sit and strum the keys

My head is swimming

I try try to sing, off-key

But no, it's winning

The room is spinning

It brings me to my knees

No balance... no relief.

I don't even have no f'cking Aleve!

 

Deep in my ear canal

I hear reverberations

Deep in my ear canal

A piercing sensation...

 

I'm due on a plane, tomorrow

But this way I can't go,

Another cancelled show

Another damn low blow

And they will stage a row

A pretty way of showing sorrow!

 

Amoxillin amoxillin amoxillin anistill

 

:wink2:

 

--Jack

 

I had no idea that you were a brilliant lyricist as well as a truly gifted artist!

 

Wow.

 

:shocked:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even husbands can tolerate him because it's not as if their wives are really going to run off with an overgrown boy singing about lollipops in an animal suit.

 

They're NOT?! :shocked:

 

Hmmm... guess I need to rethink my plans... :naughty:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So now Mika is not enough like the Scissor Sisters. :bleh:

 

I'm ok with most negative reviews of Mika--I mean, I can usually see where they're coming from at least, and if he's not their cup of tea (or their sandwich spread, whatever) all right--but... why in the world would people complain about him not being sexed-up enough? Isn't that rather cliche and old hat by now? Some of us rather like the fact that Mika's like a children's show presenter sometimes. (Some of us even miss the camp children's show presenters!)

 

Sure, on his next tour he could strip half naked and cover himself with glitter while gyrating around his mic-stand and pulling on his braces, but personally I'd be a little bored with that. I mean, that's Patrick Wolf's thing, and young!Iggy Pop's thing, and so on and so forth. Mika's "asexual" bouncyness is rather more unique.

 

--Jack

 

as usual, i agree with you.

but you can say it better than me of course!

 

it seems we are the only enthousiast persons about mika.....

but oh well,, we are fans! :biggrin2:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...
I don't know if this one has been posted before - in that case: sorry! :blush-anim-cl:

 

 

Mika

@ Somerset House, London, 17 July 2007

 

Mika's the Mr Marmite of pop, isn't he? People seem to either love or hate him. His summer gig as part of Somerset House's Summer Series of open air concerts offered the chance to see if he would be as divisive in the flesh as he is on record.

That it was a beautiful evening at this most picturesque of venues wasn't going to harm him. An advance request that we wear "fantastical fancy dress" was greeted with dread and the grouches who ignored this edict were surrounded by fairies, pirates and angels. The party atmosphere was stoked by candy floss sellers and some truly superb stilt-wearing balloon model makers.

 

Meanwhile Patrick Wolf was contributing a good supporting performance. Jumping around in shorts and bare feet he may have made a few new fans as he ended with a rousing Stars and The Magic Position, leaving the crowd ready for this year's other camp young pop star.

 

Strangely the music Mika chose to bound on stage to was the excerpt from As Heard On Radio Soulwax Vol 2, when Independent Woman mixes into Nine To Five and then Royksopp's Eple. But then his show began and he kicked off with Cutting Crew sound-alike Relax (Take It Easy). Although his falsetto grated a bit, his voice stayed on top form all night.

 

With debut album Life In Cartoon Motion making up his entire back catalogue, he played every track, but managed to mix things up a little by adding a couple of cover versions. That he chose two of the most melodic pieces of electronic pop from the last 25 years in Eurythmics' Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) and a banging version of The Source's You Got The Love said a lot about where his music comes from.

 

His larger lady dancers turned up for Big Girl (You Are Beautiful) and ballads Any Other World and album highlight Happy Ending were both recreated superbly for the big stage. The set ended with power pop trio Love Today, Grace Kelly and finally Lollipop accompanied by a zoo-load of cute furry animals, perhaps borrowed from The Flaming Lips, and a huge explosion of ticker tape and streamers.

 

Mika has some really good songs and on balance he is a genuinely good thing for pop music. He writes his own material and plays live beyond summer roadshows. But as with the album something wasn't quite right. It's almost as if everything about Mika is great, apart from Mika. There's ultimately something insubstantial about him. He's camp, but in a strange asexual children's television presenter way rather than in a glam, funky Jake Shears way. Yet he knows who his fans are and he works them well and, if you like him on record, you'll like him live too. It'll be interesting to see where he goes next – the current album has a short shelf life and if he's capable it would be great to see him follow his electro influences and find some edge.

- Ben Urdang

 

http://www.musicomh.com/gigs/mika-2_0707.htm

 

Ben Urdang is def not a great Mika fan! :naughty:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

here's a very nice report instead :wub2:

 

Image021.jpgImage019.jpg

 

 

It’s been an eventful year since last Mika was reviewed on these very pages. And there has been no eating of hats: he has had an incredible rise through the ranks of stardom since November. To go from playing Dingwalls, a 500 capacity venue in Camden, to Somerset House, a spectacular 3000 capacity venue in the heart of London is quite an achievement. He said it himself tonight: “It’s been an amazing year.” Not even a year; barely 9 months have passed.

 

The celebs are out in force: we spot Alan Cumming, Peaches Geldof and Gareth Gates.That’s quite a fanbase. The first thing that strikes me, though, is the eclectic audience. People of all ages are here; it’s hard to tell if they are fans of Mika, just fancied seeing a gig in such a beautiful setting, or were on the guestlist. Who knows or even dares to dream, but they all seem to be enjoying themselves.

 

It’s almost as if a carnival has landed in the middle of London - there are people juggling, women walking around on stilts making balloon gifts for people (we see flowers, hearts, hats, pirate swords…), people dancing with ribbons, a girl giving out lollipops and stalls selling candyfloss.

 

Support act Patrick Wolf is already onstage by the time we finish our plastic cups of Pimms and tear ourselves away from our river view from the bar. To quote Miss Matthews, “he’s like a Bavarian schoolboy, crossed with a Fraggle”. I think I know what she means, he’s wearing what looks like lederhosen, and dancing around the stage in a way that is indeed reminiscent of a Fraggle. I didn’t know anything about him other than the name before I saw him, but I found his enthusiasm infectious and I’m going to look up more of his songs. The violin parts gave some of them an almost east European feel, while others were more dance-track based, or were dreamy ballads, with his sister adding backing vocals.

 

Mika eventually takes to the stage, fashionably late, but from the moment he steps out, he is a whirlwind of energy. He pauses briefly between songs to survey the sight in front of him; people dressed in carnival attire, or as his own song characters. He makes a valid point though, and one I’ve always wondered about: “When you dress like that, how do you get on the tube?”, and even dedicates a song to those who have been brave enough to get on public transport dressed as Lollipop Girl.

 

The sound this evening is incredible - for an outdoor event, it is as good as, if not better than, any sound system in a venue. It is so clear, and we can hear all the backing vocals, and the brass section which accompanies the band on tracks such as ‘Billy Brown’. We’re treated to a cover of ‘Sweet Dreams’; ‘Over My Shoulder’, written when he was in college, is the kind of song which gives you goose bumps, with its haunting harmonies; and the segue between ‘Happy Ending’, a slow, almost gospel-style song, into a cover of the dance track ‘You Got The Love’ only serves to show the diversity and talent of his band.

 

But by far the highlight of his set is recent single ‘Love Today’. Beginning with solo Mika vocals, echoing around the courtyard, it explodes into the recognisable chorus, and ends with a long instrumental, with Mika drumming along on a dustbin and dancing around with his drumsticks aloft.

 

The obligatory encore is ‘Lollipop’, his traditional way of ending a set; and this is where the carnival really climaxes - bubbles, confetti and streamers all shoot out into the audience, and the band are joined onstage by giant bunnies, elephants and Lollipop Girls.

 

I get the impression that Mika can hardly believe it all himself: he’s gone from waitering in that very building for the Mayor of London, to playing a successful set in front of an avid crowd. And best of all, they seem to be immensely enjoying the ride.

 

 

http://www.kidvinyl.co.uk/?p=199

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ben Urdang is def not a great Mika fan! :naughty:

 

i think you're right:naughty:

 

here's a very nice report instead :wub2:

 

Image021.jpgImage019.jpg

 

 

It’s been an eventful year since last Mika was reviewed on these very pages. And there has been no eating of hats: he has had an incredible rise through the ranks of stardom since November. To go from playing Dingwalls, a 500 capacity venue in Camden, to Somerset House, a spectacular 3000 capacity venue in the heart of London is quite an achievement. He said it himself tonight: “It’s been an amazing year.” Not even a year; barely 9 months have passed.

 

The celebs are out in force: we spot Alan Cumming, Peaches Geldof and Gareth Gates.That’s quite a fanbase. The first thing that strikes me, though, is the eclectic audience. People of all ages are here; it’s hard to tell if they are fans of Mika, just fancied seeing a gig in such a beautiful setting, or were on the guestlist. Who knows or even dares to dream, but they all seem to be enjoying themselves.

 

It’s almost as if a carnival has landed in the middle of London - there are people juggling, women walking around on stilts making balloon gifts for people (we see flowers, hearts, hats, pirate swords…), people dancing with ribbons, a girl giving out lollipops and stalls selling candyfloss.

 

Support act Patrick Wolf is already onstage by the time we finish our plastic cups of Pimms and tear ourselves away from our river view from the bar. To quote Miss Matthews, “he’s like a Bavarian schoolboy, crossed with a Fraggle”. I think I know what she means, he’s wearing what looks like lederhosen, and dancing around the stage in a way that is indeed reminiscent of a Fraggle. I didn’t know anything about him other than the name before I saw him, but I found his enthusiasm infectious and I’m going to look up more of his songs. The violin parts gave some of them an almost east European feel, while others were more dance-track based, or were dreamy ballads, with his sister adding backing vocals.

 

Mika eventually takes to the stage, fashionably late, but from the moment he steps out, he is a whirlwind of energy. He pauses briefly between songs to survey the sight in front of him; people dressed in carnival attire, or as his own song characters. He makes a valid point though, and one I’ve always wondered about: “When you dress like that, how do you get on the tube?”, and even dedicates a song to those who have been brave enough to get on public transport dressed as Lollipop Girl.

 

The sound this evening is incredible - for an outdoor event, it is as good as, if not better than, any sound system in a venue. It is so clear, and we can hear all the backing vocals, and the brass section which accompanies the band on tracks such as ‘Billy Brown’. We’re treated to a cover of ‘Sweet Dreams’; ‘Over My Shoulder’, written when he was in college, is the kind of song which gives you goose bumps, with its haunting harmonies; and the segue between ‘Happy Ending’, a slow, almost gospel-style song, into a cover of the dance track ‘You Got The Love’ only serves to show the diversity and talent of his band.

 

But by far the highlight of his set is recent single ‘Love Today’. Beginning with solo Mika vocals, echoing around the courtyard, it explodes into the recognisable chorus, and ends with a long instrumental, with Mika drumming along on a dustbin and dancing around with his drumsticks aloft.

 

The obligatory encore is ‘Lollipop’, his traditional way of ending a set; and this is where the carnival really climaxes - bubbles, confetti and streamers all shoot out into the audience, and the band are joined onstage by giant bunnies, elephants and Lollipop Girls.

 

I get the impression that Mika can hardly believe it all himself: he’s gone from waitering in that very building for the Mayor of London, to playing a successful set in front of an avid crowd. And best of all, they seem to be immensely enjoying the ride.

 

 

http://www.kidvinyl.co.uk/?p=199

 

great article! i love how the writer describes the performances of over my shoulder and love today! t4p:thumb_yello:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Privacy Policy