SNH top gigs of 2011 - CocoRosie + Ólöf Arnalds - Sydney Opera House - 25/01/11
Because we like you so much, dear readers and Scene Not Herd enthusiasts, over the course of this month, we will be bringing you the highlights from our year.
As promoters, it’s always nice to go to someone else’s gig and let them do all the hard work. We have, as a collective, and independently, been to A LOT of shows this year. Some have been stupendous; some have, well, just been shit. But, in the spirit of SNH (and Christmas) we’re just going to talk about the performances that we’ve enjoyed and loved the absolute most. So let me get started...
In January, on a whim, more or less, I decided to go to Australia. I think I went to about three or four gigs while I was there – but this one has completely stuck with me.
I really wanted to go to a concert in the Sydney Opera House while I was down under, so I paid $59, to go and see a band I’d actually never got around to listening to – CocoRosie – rationalising the slightly excessive spending with the argument that if it’s in the Opera House, it must be good.
Opening, and the act that I really want to focus on, was the enchanting Icelandic songstress Ólöf Arnalds; who is perhaps better known for her role in the electronic act múm.
Beguiling, with an air of simplistic innocence, her crystalline voice cut through a transfixed audience as she recited pieces both in English and her native tongue. There was a charming purity to her song 'Vinur Minn', which commences with a passage from an Icelandic poem before transitioning into a joyous, uplifting melody which consists solely of ‘la-la-las’; she later joked that it wasn’t like we understood her singing in Icelandic anyway. Throughout, Ólöf cracked jokes, explained songs and even experimented with the venue’s acoustics; which only served to endear her further to her onlookers.
I think one of my favourite parts of the night was the song ‘Klara’; which, she explained, she had written for her sister’s 18th birthday. The other highlight for me was Ólöf’s delicate interpretation of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘I’m on Fire’ which was sung with an earnest honesty and full of depth.
Throughout her set, what struck me was the audible silence of the crowd; whose encapsulation said more than a million applausive handclaps.
As you may imagine, Ólöf was a hard act to follow. The lights dimmed, in what I thought was in anticipation of CocoRosie. I was surprised, instead, to be treated to a fifteen minute intense bout of beatboxing, courtesy of super-human French beatboxer Tez. In his set he managed to deliver phenomenal looped beats and complicated synth melodies which had his onlookers captivated in awe.
Enigmatic sisters Bianca (Coco) and Sierra (Rosie) then joined the beatboxer on stage. Surrounded by helium balloons, their fairytale capes glowed and shimmered under bright florescent lights. Behind them, visuals were projected conveying random images that added a eerie, otherworldly layer of occult weirdness to their playful aesthetic.
Amalgamating various genre interpretations including pop, folk, hip hop, opera and electronica, into their eclectic sound, they proceeded to wow their audience with a set, consisting largely of songs from their release, 'Grey Oceans'.
The girls commenced with the downbeat, insular 'Lemonade', which contains moments of dark tenderness, juxtaposed with Sierra’s upbeat chorus. Highlights from their set included the up-tempo 'Hopscotch'; with the girls playing handclaps together and dancing around on stage; as well as the sad and moving 'By your Side'.
The great thing about CocoRosie is the girls' uniquie ability to play off each other; balancing two extremely different types of vocal, one opera, one childlike, to create a combination so affecting.
I think this is my concert of the year, because I came away, musically, with so much more than I went in with. Both Ólöf Arnalds and CocoRosie, have become two of my absolute favourite artists. Had I not gone, I wouldn’t have known or cared about either act at all and I am extremely grateful that I do (and now you do too).
Honourable mentions must go to: Shugo Tokumaru at Cafe Oto; Primavera Sound 2011; and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah at Scala - SA
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