Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti + Os Mutantes – Le National – 11.16.10
Os Mutantes were first on stage. Their colourful costumes promised quite a show and at the very least a pleasant reminder of that psychedelic vibe which made them famous in the first place. Sure, the band has changed almost completely since it’s formation in the 60’s, but it felt like its essence has remained the same throughout the years. They started to play to a scattered crowd that in all honesty didn’t seem too excited to see them live. Judging by the youthfulness of the audience, it was pretty obvious that most of the people in attendance weren’t even born when Os Mutantes reached its peak in popularity. Fortunately, as the show went on, everyone seemed to get more into the performance. Sérgio Dias spoke to us in a funny mix of French, English and Portuguese, explaining why they had released a new album in 2009; as a gift to their fans. They then proceeded to play a couple of songs from this latest LP, entitled Hate Or Amortecedor. Some of these pieces has some incredible crescendos which brought the energy level up a few notches and got some people dancing up near the front of the stage. Even if the set was a bit long (understandably so considering their eleven albums) the performance left everyone with a little piece of Brazil in their hearts.
The energy in the room changed drastically as Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti took the stage. The four piece band, lead by the charismatic Ariel Pink himself, didn’t give too much at first. They started with “Beverly Kills” from their latest album, Before Today. Again, Pink didn’t do much except mumble his lyrics into his microphone and well, act like he usually does. Most of the time, he just looked at us in a manner that could only be described as condescending. Hands in his pockets, he continued with “L’Estat” also from his last LP. Following up with some songs from his earlier albums, the difference in musical style was pretty remarkable and showed his true versatility as a musician and how much he has grown over the years as a musician. With songs a lot more structured and focused, Before Today is an obvious step forward for Pink. Most of the crowd seemed to agree as they reacted really well to these new songs and barely at all to the older tunes. As the band went into “Menopause Man”, everyone seemed to warm up a bit more but Pink was still as weird as ever, mostly doing nothing. When he wasn’t singing (oh sorry, mumbling) he was just standing there looking completely detached and even arrogant. Well, at least they played for a good hour but in the end I was left with mixed feelings. Had we had just witnessed one of the most overrated acts of the decade, or was this guy a true musical genius? I guess only time will tell. – Camille Gervais
Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti
Os Mutantes
Photography by Amelia Robitaille
