Review: The Owen/Cox Dance Company's "A Body of Work"

As the rest of an audience of about 100 watched five athletic dancers at La Esquina on Sunday, October 5, I studied Brad Cox as he manipulated sound at the back of the room.  I have nothing against ballet, but Cox's stunning score for The Owen/Cox Dance Group's production "A Body of Work" demanded my full attention.  Using a combination of prerecorded backing tracks, ambient beats derived from the dancers' movements, a drum machine and the live vocals of Victoria Botero, Cox crafted a compelling soundscape.  Additional percussion emanating from four hanging columns and a quadrophonic mix made the experience even more dizzying.  Cox's exceptional performance was a civilized version of the futuristic work of groundbreaking acts like Marijuana Deathsquads.


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I reviewed Tuesday's concert by Gaslight Anthem, Against Me! and Cory Branan.

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The Kronos Quartet's performance at Helzberg Hall floored me on Saturday. 

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Ikey Owens of Mars Volta has died.  Owens recently produced Various Blonde's Summer High album.

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John Holt of the Paragons has died.

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Here's a video tour of the Vinyl Underground at 7th Heaven.

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Local Customs: Cavern Sound, a compilation of forgotten bands from Independence, will be released this week.  The only name that rings a bell is Morningstar, a band I hadn't thought about in at least 25 years.

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Iceage's Plowing Into the Field of Love is shockingly raw.  RIYL: The Fall, drunken stupors, the Birthday Party.  Here's "How Many".

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The video for Bonnie 'Prince' Billy's "Quail and Dumplings" is almost as good as the song.

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It's not fair to Vince Staples, but almost all I could think about as I listened to Hell Can Wait was how much I still love Earl Sweatshirt's Doris.  RIYL: OFWGKTA, Los Angeles, the Cool Kids.

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On Worker, the latest studio album by Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, the Oklahoma band veers into electronic territory.  RIYL: Soulive, acting on impulses, Galactic.

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SZA's fine new album Z is RIYL: Sade, slow motion, Frank Ocean.  "Babylon" is the best track.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Concert Review: Elena Urioste and Gabriela Martinez at the Folly Theater

A pair of staggeringly beautiful women who happen to be accomplished musicians made Leoš Janáček's harrowing "Sonata for Violin and Piano" the centerpiece of their concert Friday at the Folly Theater.  What's not to love?  Over 900 people took advantage of the 25th installment of the free Discovery Concert of the Harriman-Jewell Series.  I was completely smitten by the performances of violinist Elena Urioste and pianist Gabriela Martinez.  A sensitive reading of Claude Debussy's "Sonata for Violin and Piano in G minor" served as a secondary highlight.  By the time the inspired rendition of the piece concluded, I more fully understood why jazz musicians including Charlie Parker adored the French composer. 


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I reviewed the There Might Be Giants at Crossroads KC on Thursday.  "Doctor Worm" refuses to crawl out of my noggin- "I'm not a real doctor but I am a real worm- I am an actual worm!"

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Much of the video for Not a Planet's "Kingdom Come" was shot on the lawn of the Nelson-Atkins Museum.

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Nico Yoch has an ambitious video for "Ain't Stoppin'".  RIYL: Ces Cru, Atmosphere, 9th Wonder.  (Via Tony's Kansas City.)

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Sister Wife is the latest recording by power pop maestros Hidden Pictures.

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Doby Watson and Margo May's Watson & May is RIYL the Head and the Heart, Grouplove, NPR.

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"I'm basically a product of my record collection."  Learning that Mikael Akerfeldt of Opeth is a fellow obsessive geek makes me happy. 

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I'm delighted and surprised to see that Azymuth is being reclaimed by fashionable DJs.

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Bonnie Prince Billy and Dawn McCarthy's cover of "Omaha" floors me.

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Light In the Attic put together a nice miniature documentary on Bobby Whitlock.

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The end is nigh.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)