Consensus has it that Remain in Light is a canonical album. And I can't disagree one bit with that. I remember being mystified and more than a little confused when I first laid ears on it in high school. In the many listens since, I've become convinced that side a is a nearly perfect display of momentum, all elements transmuted into pure rhythm. Side b finds a way to be abstract in an oddly poignant way, only to grind to an absolute halt by the end, and it unsettles enough to want to hear it all again. I'd say it represents the best African-inspired music that Eastern seaboarders can hope to make without actually aping Fela or getting into some Paul Simon-esque imperial plundering (let's not even dignify Vampire Weekend with a put-down).This live version of that album's leadoff track is a little more sly. Rather than trying to replicate the album's dense rhythmic interplay, they go for a more spacious telling. It coaxes, teases, and swirls while Adrian Belew earns his freelance rate on top of it all. There's a nervous joy to it, replacing the rapturous doom, and maybe it has something to do with being on stage, seeing seven people around you helping make your nice arty new wave band into something you don't quite understand and wouldn't try to stop.
Talking Heads - Born Under Punches (live)
"it represents the best African-inspired music that Eastern seaboarders can hope to make"
ReplyDeleteNo way. That superlative goes to the song "Imagine It" by the Dirty Projectors. Hands down.
Not sure I agree with you cowboy, but I'll grant that the debate is open.
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