Toronto Show tomorrow (now last night)

[2-J]

Press review:-



COOL SIMONON RED HOT

Toronton Sun http://torontosun.com/Entertainment/Music/2007/03/13/3742342-sun.html

By JANE STEVENSON

The much-anticipated return to the Toronto stage of one-time Clash bassist Paul Simonon on Sunday night at Kool Haus was worth the price of admission alone.

Simonon is 51 years old but still effortlessly, impossibly cool. The fact he is still making beautiful-sounding, distinctly different music -- with Blur/Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn, Verve guitarist Simon Tong and drummer Tony Allen -- was an added bonus.

Simonon traded in his bass for an artist's paintbrush following the demise of his post-Clash band Havana 3 A.M. in 1993. (That was one of his large cityscape canvases serving as the backdrop behind the band on Sunday night).

But he recently hooked up with Albarn -- a neighbour in West London -- and the other two musicians to make their debut disc, the atmospheric, pretty, and melancholic The Good, The Bad & The Queen.

What's their sound? Think The Kinks meet The Specials, with loads of folk, gospel and cabaret thrown in for good measure.


The popular misconception has been that this group is also called The GBQ, but in interviews both Simonon (with Sun Media) and Albarn have said the band remains unnamed.

Whatever they want to be called, these four players clearly have come upon a golden collaboration, judging by their impressive, verging-on-theatrical, hour-long performance in Toronto, the first of five dates in North American and the only Canadian show.

All eyes were largely on the good looking and intense Simonon, decked out in a leather porkpie hat and grey pin-striped suit, straight out of casting for a Guy Ritchie movie.

Whenever he crept toward the front of the stage, Simonon activated his own private cheering section. His constant movement as he snaked around the stage, often shaking his instrument to Allen's big beats, was riveting to watch.

It seems that Simonon, who frequently smiled when he wasn't enjoying a smoke, missed performing almost as much as we missed him.

Albarn, meanwhile, wisely took a cue from Simonon, and was also dressed in a suit and a black top hat as he alternated between manning the microphone at the front and playing a piano toward the back, where a Union Jack flag was draped.

"This is the first time we've played outside England," said Albarn, to huge cheers, before realizing his mistake.

"That isn't true. We've played in Scotland, France and Germany. So that's bull----."

Honestly, not one of the 1,500 people gathered at Kool Haus seemed to care.

Kicking off the performance was History Song, the first track on The Good, The Bad & The Queen. The four players sounded tight from the first note, backed by a four-woman string section, who were wearing black bowler hats.

From there they played the remainder of the album in its entirety, and in order, with the middle and end sections standing out -- Northern Whale, Kingdom of Doom, Herculean, Behind the Sun, followed by Three Changes, Green Fields and The Good, The Bad & The Queen.

For the encore, they threw in an instrumental that didn't make it onto the disc.

That old performing rule seemed to apply here: Always leave them wanting more. Simonon, for one, most certainly did.

PAUL SIMONON, DAMON ALBARN, SIMON TONG, TONY ALLEN

SUNDAY NIGHT

WHERE: KOOL HAUS

Sun Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5
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[kazza]

[tkprtyrhd]

Live At Edge Studios, they only played Green Fields and Kingdom of Doom (If I remember right) but they hung around afterwards and signed a bunch of stuff, and I got pictures with Paul and Damon, and got the poster that comes with the LP signed.


Then I got there, 2 hours early to wait in line, which wasn't bad until it started getting freezing cold about half an hour before doors opened, managed to get on the barrier, between Paul and Damon, but no merch was disappointing, as was the rather terrible magician.

Then they took the stage









It was a great set, whole album back to front, Paul, Damon, and Tony were definitely all into it, and Simon didn't smile, though he did at the Edge signings. They played Doghouse at the end, which was a big instrumental jam, and I think Damon was getting upset because his Melodica broke. I was definitely moving around and having fun and singing along, but the crowd was generally still which was sad.

[kazza]

Great photos! Nice suit too, Damon!

Damon is so fun to watch on stage because he is truly intense and doesn't hide his disappointment or his elation when things go exactly as he wants them to. Truly a professional! I have always liked him but definitely came away from my show very impressed.
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[Subbaman]

Nice pictures, I was about ten feet to the right so I can relate the view.

[CNCRD]

Fantastic pics!!!!
How many people were there at the Edge studios?
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[tkprtyrhd]

[CNCRD]

Was it a VIP session or how they picked those 50 or so people?
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[tkprtyrhd]

[2-J]

f***ing fantastic photos....!! Mind if we use one or two on the official site, (with credit to you of course, tkprtyrhd!)
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[tkprtyrhd]

[lovely rita]

Nice pictures! Thanks for sharing
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I'm an albarnaholic, and I don't want to solve my problem.

We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.

[lovely rita]

Look at this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TojX83iCQHQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwQUzbPmQdI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mPInSngQpg
_________________
I'm an albarnaholic, and I don't want to solve my problem.

We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.

[Coco Miasawa]

Thanks, lovely rita.
The first one is fantastic. Oh, Mr. Albarn looks so cuite with his micro....
What's the second one? I don't think I know it.
The third is so la la.

[kazza]