I wrote this up for PM:X2, but figured I can get double-duty out of it here; hopefully it's interesting to some.
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On Sunday night, violinist Rachel Barton-Pine was honored as a "Great Performer of Illinois", and gave a special 3-part concert at Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago's Millennium Park. Among non-music-snobs, she's locally best known for badly losing a fight with a Metra train back in the '90s, but once you see her play you quickly forget how you first heard about her.
Millennium Park is Chicago's new jewel on the lakefront, a center of high culture and civilization in the heart of the city, and the park is dominated by Frank Gehry's Pritzker Pavilion, one of the most dramatic stages in the world:
On this stage, Barton-Pine would play three sets with three different groups (and do three wardrobe changes).
First, baroque Trio Settecento:
Then, some Tchaikovsky with the Illinois Symphony Orchestra:
And finally with Earthen Grave, her doom/thrash metal band:
This is the fourth time I've seen Earthen Grave perform. Since the first time, I've said that they're a band with international potential, and this performance did nothing to change my mind.
Despite being the first metal band to ever play at Millennium Park, and an audience who listens to a whole lot more NPR than RebelRadio, they pulled no punches and softened no edges, sending full-volume metal out to boom off the downtown skyscrapers.
The highlight of this show was a cover of Rainbow's "Stargazer". Three more players came out to form a strinq quartet with Rachel; I'd been secretly hoping they'd bring the whole orchestra back out to join them for a song, but this was the second best thing. And the singer, who can sometimes be a bit iffy, ended up doing a very respectable tribute to Dio. Some years ago, in a pretentious effort to hold myself aloof from the Mindless Metal Masses, I stopped throwing the horns, but this was one of the rare occasions where I couldn't help bustin' 'em out again.
Here's the pro-shot video of "Stargazer":
And again, Bruce Franklin also joined 'em for some Trouble songs.
It was a rainy Sunday night, and people had been slowly trickling away all evening, so what might have been a crowd of 1000+ was down to 500 by the time Earthen Grave started. Then there were certainly some who gave them a song or two, said "I do declare, that is QUITE enough!", and beat a hasty retreat. But the vast majority stayed, and even seemed to enjoy themselves, though not many figured out that you could stand up and headbang. There was a group of 5 or 10 near me who were up out of the chairs (myself included of course), but the rest of the audience sat politely and listened.
At least The Dude was there to rock out:
Other interesting sights/moments:
- Sprinkled amongst the civilized crowd, one out of every 100 people I saw was a familiar face from "the metal scene". Sleeper cells, out of their element, (not-so) secretly infiltrating mainstream civilization, waiting patiently for the signal from their leaders to activate and...start a massive mosh pit?
- Related, this is probably the first time in history that someone wearing a DYING FETUS shirt was seen walking amongst an audience listening to an orchestra play Tchaikovsky.
- The conductor of the Illinois Symphony standing appreciatively (as were other orchestra members) in the wings and shooting video:
Heck of a night, and it was free!
They finally have good versions of their songs (including their sweet Witchfinder General and Pentagram covers) at http://www.facebook.com/earthengrave (no membership required).
Neil
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On Sunday night, violinist Rachel Barton-Pine was honored as a "Great Performer of Illinois", and gave a special 3-part concert at Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago's Millennium Park. Among non-music-snobs, she's locally best known for badly losing a fight with a Metra train back in the '90s, but once you see her play you quickly forget how you first heard about her.
Millennium Park is Chicago's new jewel on the lakefront, a center of high culture and civilization in the heart of the city, and the park is dominated by Frank Gehry's Pritzker Pavilion, one of the most dramatic stages in the world:
On this stage, Barton-Pine would play three sets with three different groups (and do three wardrobe changes).
First, baroque Trio Settecento:
Then, some Tchaikovsky with the Illinois Symphony Orchestra:
And finally with Earthen Grave, her doom/thrash metal band:
This is the fourth time I've seen Earthen Grave perform. Since the first time, I've said that they're a band with international potential, and this performance did nothing to change my mind.
Despite being the first metal band to ever play at Millennium Park, and an audience who listens to a whole lot more NPR than RebelRadio, they pulled no punches and softened no edges, sending full-volume metal out to boom off the downtown skyscrapers.
The highlight of this show was a cover of Rainbow's "Stargazer". Three more players came out to form a strinq quartet with Rachel; I'd been secretly hoping they'd bring the whole orchestra back out to join them for a song, but this was the second best thing. And the singer, who can sometimes be a bit iffy, ended up doing a very respectable tribute to Dio. Some years ago, in a pretentious effort to hold myself aloof from the Mindless Metal Masses, I stopped throwing the horns, but this was one of the rare occasions where I couldn't help bustin' 'em out again.
Here's the pro-shot video of "Stargazer":
And again, Bruce Franklin also joined 'em for some Trouble songs.
It was a rainy Sunday night, and people had been slowly trickling away all evening, so what might have been a crowd of 1000+ was down to 500 by the time Earthen Grave started. Then there were certainly some who gave them a song or two, said "I do declare, that is QUITE enough!", and beat a hasty retreat. But the vast majority stayed, and even seemed to enjoy themselves, though not many figured out that you could stand up and headbang. There was a group of 5 or 10 near me who were up out of the chairs (myself included of course), but the rest of the audience sat politely and listened.
At least The Dude was there to rock out:
Other interesting sights/moments:
- Sprinkled amongst the civilized crowd, one out of every 100 people I saw was a familiar face from "the metal scene". Sleeper cells, out of their element, (not-so) secretly infiltrating mainstream civilization, waiting patiently for the signal from their leaders to activate and...start a massive mosh pit?
- Related, this is probably the first time in history that someone wearing a DYING FETUS shirt was seen walking amongst an audience listening to an orchestra play Tchaikovsky.
- The conductor of the Illinois Symphony standing appreciatively (as were other orchestra members) in the wings and shooting video:
Heck of a night, and it was free!
They finally have good versions of their songs (including their sweet Witchfinder General and Pentagram covers) at http://www.facebook.com/earthengrave (no membership required).
Neil
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