Reading about concert reviews, I stumbled upon a Rihanna article. It stated how Rihanna rocks in a sudden surprise show in Manhattan. Everybody all around Times Square started singing with her, glad to have her bestow her presence on mere commoners. They are pleased to see her on such a small stage, it is so exciting.
I hear these words describing concerts all the time. Honestly, I’m a little tired of these performances showing “enthusiasm” for the audience. Rather than these high-octane performances, I want a low-octane performance. When I enter that concert hall, I want the singer or performers to be half-asleep or fully asleep.
There’s a few ways this can happen, and it already looks like pop and indie music are converging on the same point. Pop musicians lip-sync like it was nobody’s business. So you get to watch your favorite artist dance right in front of you. Since they’re performing to a pre-recorded track, they really can give it their all dance-wise. Of course they can go further. Whitney Houston doesn’t lip sync; she just kind of stands there and forgets the lyrics of most of her songs. Perhaps if she decided to get a beer in the middle of her concert as the rest of the band sort of mumbles, then I might want to see her live.
Indie music as well includes similar forms of sleepiness. Some entire genres are based exclusively on not interacting with the audience. Off the top of my head, I’d say shoegaze does a great job of embodying that non-performance I want others to strive towards. Unable to be bothered with even looking at the audience, they merely play their instruments and stare blankly at their Converse sneakers.
Outside of rock, there are those legends. Salem could not care less whether or not you enjoy their performance. In fact, when they were asked about their dreadful appearance at South by Southwest, they stated that “Who cares about performing live, we wanted to take a nap. Those audience members should consider themselves lucky to see us. Screw our fans, those guys suck.” After the fall out and receiving only a 7.5 on Pitchfork for their album, they have since shied away from such middle finger invoking statements. I guess most of the buzz-o-sphere wants musicians who ‘care’ about what they do, rather than having them rap while on psychotropic substances. Nonetheless, they take “Not giving a fuck” to a whole new level.
My ideal low octane performance might be an even more lethargic slow version of Sigur Ros. Instead of standing up for the performance, the attendees bring blankets and pillows. As the band begins, they move at a sloth-like pace. Slowly, things build down to the absolute basic parts of the music. Think of a stripped down version of Low and you’re halfway there. Eventually the drummer falls asleep and the guitars play so rarely all you hear is the ghost eminence of what had been a chord. The singer brings all of the band members together and they spoon on stage before falling asleep completely.
I really hope that someday these indie and pop bands will realize how much easier things can be if they take this approach. That way energy could be used more productively by updating their twitter, posting songs up on pitchfork/youtube, and partying hard. Bands, you’re welcome. Audience, buy some sleep attire. May I suggest matching pajamas?