Live Pics, Music

Manu Chao @ Saint Andrew’s Hall - Detroit, MI (6/19/07)

Posted by: detourmag on June 22, 2007 at 8:18 am

ManuChaoB.jpg

Manu Chao and his band Radio Bemba Sound System are the only musicians in the entire world who have permission to perform while wearing shorts. Chao’s music is famous for its multilingualism and border-busting vitality - the influence of the Clash on his sound is as apparent as any of the languages he sings in, which includes French, Spanish, English, Arabic, and Portuguese. But live, the trick isn’t to decipher which dialect Chao’s using now, or detect the nods to The Clash’s version of “Armagideon Time” beneath the frenetic peppering of Bemba’s percussionist. No, the trick is to keep up with a band that will play a vibrant, pulsing three-hour set of music like it’s nothing, and barely stop between songs. There are no pants in that equation.

Even if Manu Chao found it necessary to insert the traditional breaks between songs, it would still be difficult to recognize any individual tracks, since his context has never been singles, but movements. The music flowed in layers even in the days of Mano Negra, Chao’s Paris-based band previous to going solo, and at this show Chao and Bemba played for nearly an hour before resting very briefly to say hello to the capacity crowd. “Hello,” that is, in four different languages, with a cheer rising up from the packed and sweaty throng for each one. And with that they launched right back into a set inflected with ska and reggae grooves, but with the addition of excited Latin percussion, wah-pedal-enabled rocktastic guitar solos, fleeting moments of acoustic wizardry, and lively exhortations for crowd participation. And pogoing. Lots of pogoing.

There was also a siren effect pinging periodically throughout the set - “WHOO-woo-woo-woo-woo-woo…” - triggered by Chao’s organist/keyboardist, signaling Chao’s preference for mixing the musical and lyrical building blocks of his own songs together in a mishmash of sweat and mirth.

The siren alluded the darker themes in Chao’s music, too, the sense that his furiously international sound can be a signal call, a uniter against the dividing policies of governments in the US and abroad. And to Chao’s credit, he never overdid the activist bit. There were a few calls for “Mr. Bush, Mr. White House” to “listen up,” and pleas for equality, harmony, and peace. But he kept the focus on the music (and the sweating), and let his very presence in the club as a man without borders signify his stance.

Manu Chao is the mayor, bard, and jester, the global village, and he’s wearing shorts on stage.

– Johnny Loftus

Comments

Comments are closed.

SHWFLYR

The Gories

  • Recent Posts

  • Tags

  • Archives