who the fuck?

Hope you don't mind if this site is turned into a PJ Harvey fan site just for a few days! You should watch this really cool short interview where PJ talks about recording and producing her new album. There's a also a clip of the video for Who the Fuck? and some live footage. Enjoy!
WMP :: RP

I've been sick for the past two days, hence forcing me to miss what seemed to have been a great show on thursday at new venue The Delancey for the UP/+1 party. Also heard that last night's Social!sm at Rothko was packed and awesome, that's great to hear.
I'll be out again tonight, and tomorrow afternoon, as Jasper and i are throwing another DAY AFTER party at pianos starting at 4pm with DJs, drinks, brunch, and the fun that comes with it. We'll also be listening to Simple Kid's new album at 6pm, and Simple Kid himself will play an acoustic set later on upstairs at pianos. It's all free, and everyone's welcome to come!

meet ze monsta

Before i comment on last night's show at the Knitting Factory, i just want to point out that the official PJ Harvey web site has been revamped with a new layout, new photos and lyrics to her upcoming release Uh Huh Her.

So let's get to it. Polly Jean is back. Thank goodness.

The last time i was this excited to go to a show was, well, the last time i saw PJ Harvey in 2001, when i made a weekend trip to Boston to see her play at the Orpheum Theater after seeing her live a few times in nyc. Three years later, the excitement and anticipation were more alive than ever, and the whole day yesterday, i was beside myself, listening back to her amazing body of work, hoping she'd be play all my favorites songs, but knowing that no matter what, the night will be a very special and memorable one. You bet i was right. And i am not just saying this because she is one of my favorite artists/performers/singer-songwriters of all time.

When Polly first appeared onstage last night, in her yellow mini-dress displaying one of her own photos (from the Rid of me era) ironed in the center, the knitting factory's main room temperature went up a 100 degrees. She opened her 22 song set with Uh Huh Her, a song that didn't make it onto her upcoming album of the same name, and that had Polly scream "Don't marry, uh, huh, her". Her entrance and first song clearly set the tone for what turned out to be an incredible night. She went on to play one of the most eclectic sets i've heard from her, performing songs from every album, except Rid of Me, which was a bit expected if you had taken a look at last week's set list from the Oxford show, but still a bit sad for those like me who think Rid of Me is possibly her best work.
Not surprisingly, the new songs proved to be more amazing live than on the couple of distant listens i've had so far of the new album. Who The Fuck? and The Letter being the highlights of the new repertoire. I went nuts when i heard Dress and Meet ze monsta, two personal favorites. However, the high point of the night was when, she played two tracks off of Dance Hall at Louse Point, and turned Taut into the one best single performance of the night, where instead of whispering the words as she does on the album, she sang and screamed and paced around the stage.
What is remarkable about seeing Polly live is watching her become the character of every one of her song, reinforcing that she is a storyteller (and a fucking great one) above anything. She can be desperately serious when singing Catherine, and overly sexually-charged when roaring "To bring you my love". The audience reacted particularly well to the songs off of her US best seller Stories from the City, Stories form the sea, and to her one MTV hit, Down by the water - cut a bit shorter than usual but still very powerful (no fishies on sticks this time around!).
Her musicians, who all seemed new to me, were as intensely immersed in the music as PJ was. There was a really poignant moment when onstage, it was just her and her guitarist sitting on the floor playing a beautiful stripped down rendition of There Will Never be a Better Time from The desert sessions.
Throughout the show and in spite of an imminent sore throat, i screamed "Rid of Me" a few times, desperately hoping she'll come out and play it as encore. If you've witnessed it, you'd have to agree that, live Rid of Me is by far her stronger and most emotional performance. Alas, it did not happen... but i still left feeling like this was one the best shows i've seen since, well, her last one in Boston in 2001.

When you think of PJ Harvey, you can't help but ponder the importance she has had and continues to have in the rock world today. Once you get to know her music, it's nearly impossible not to love it, even if it's just parts of it, be it her voice, her versatility, her sex appeal, her "in your face" lyrics, her guitar work, her rawness, her live performance, or just one of her songs. There wasn't anyone like her when she first came out in 1992, and there hasn't been anyone even coming close to her since then. And every time she reappears with a new album, she reclaims her place as the one and only 50ft queenie in the musical landscape today. May Polly Jean continue to hold the throne for years to come.

Setlist from vph.
Note: The first encore actually was:
Catherine
Victory
You Come Through
City of No Sun

you're no good

Where did the weekend go?

Let's see, MisShapes was insanely fun as always. JennyPenny rocked the DJ booth by playing a lot of great songs and warming the place up before i went on. Then i starting spinning and realized that Daft Punk's One more time was without any doubt the hit of the night. Then i danced to Greg and Leigh's sets, which were both fantastic.
The next day, i went to Urban Outfitters for my DJ set as part of the Filter Magazine listening event. Before i started, we listened to the new PJ Harvey album (minus track 3 cause of the swearing), which on first listen sounded really good, raw like Dry but mellow like Is this Desire?. I can never really form an opinion until i listen to an album on headphones. So when i do, i'll write more about it. Once the album was over, i started spinning in the store. I love spinning in unconventional environments. Needless to say i was tired as hell from the night before, still i had a really great time even though my set was a bit more improvised (and in my opinion, not as tight) as the night before. The goal was to play a lot of new-ish music, so that's what i tried to do. Lots of peeps came by to say hi, it was awesome! Brian, aka Danger Mouse, showed up and was very surprised to see me behind the decks. I hadn't seen him since college, so it was a reunion of sorts. I told him how it took me forever to make the connection that he was Danger Mouse. He's the nicest guy ever and hasn't changed a bit, oh and he's an amazing DJ! When he was spinning his trip-hop inspired set, i stood by the booth watching his style and skills.

Highlight of the weekend: ESG at Motherfucker!! They were beyond amazing. Seriously. They played all the hits (UFO and Moody amongst others) to an over-excited crowd and had more energy than any young band i have seen live. I'm really glad i got see them play.

This goes to Jasper: dude, i finally got rid of Ben Kweller, woohoo!
Here are the set lists of the weekend...

Set list - MisShapes 5/29:
Yaz - Don't go
!!! - Pardon my freedom
The Rapture - Olio
New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle
Ratatat - Seventeen years
Dee-Lite - Groove is in the heart
Franz Ferdinand - Take me out
Hot Hot Heat - Talk to me, dance with me
Salt'N'Pepa - Push it
Outkast - Roses
Duran Duran - Girls on film
The Clash - Rock the casbah
INXS - Original sin
Daft Punk - One more time
Michael Jackson - Don't stop til you get enough
Blondie - Call me
The Bangles - Walk like an egyptian (12" extended dance mix)
The Cure - Boys don't cry

Set List - Urban Outfitters 5/30
French Kicks - One more time
Blonde Redhead - Eqqus
Postal Service - Such great heights
Radiohead - Idioteque
Lizzy Mercier Descloux - Fire
The Stills - Still in love (12" extended mix)
Ratatat - Seventeen years
Kratwerk - The Model
The Rapture - Love is all
Scissor Sisters - Comfortably numb
Franz Ferdinand - Take me out
The Shins - So says i
Daft Punk - One more time
Radio 4 - Dance to the Underground (New Version)
Moving Units - Melodrama
The Beta Band - Assessment
Secret Machines - Nowhere again
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Y-Control
Siouxsie & The Banshees - Cities in dust