Post by Fuggle on Jul 12, 2008 18:39:40 GMT -5
Jah Wobble
Bush Hall, London
Ian Gittins
Thursday July 10, 2008
The Guardian
Jah Wobble is a true maverick. Originally the bassist in John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band, Public Image Limited, his career has included a 1991 Mercury Music Prize nomination, a concept album based on the writings of William Blake and, famously, a spell driving tube trains in London.
As part of Liverpool's City of Culture celebrations, Wobble has resurfaced with Chinese Dub, a touring project that sees him weld his trademark bass throb to Chinese melodies and instrumentation. It is visually spectacular, with tonight's 22-piece ensemble featuring Tibetan and Mao singers, traditional dancers from Hangzhou and the highly theatrical Sichuan Opera Mask Changers.
This valiant attempted fusion of east and west could fall flat on its face, but it proves a remarkable success. This is partly due to Wobble's wife, Zi Lan Liao, who picks out pizzicato patterns on a zither-like guzheng as accompaniment to Mongolian singer Gu Ying Ji, crystalline female vocalist Wanq Jingqi and three graceful and acrobatic exponents of the complex Tang dynasty dance.
In the midst of this exoticism, Wobble is a trilby-sporting East End geezer, underpinning the eclectic extravagance with his dub-bass rumble and lauding his guests with entertaining Cockney asides. "This lot 'ere are something else!" he promises as the Sichuan Opera Mask Changers appear, and is proven correct as their precipitous dance routines and costume switches leave the audience boggling.
The company returns for an encore of Wobble's own Visions of You, with the Chinese dancers skanking delightedly to his rock-steady bass pulse. It is a fittingly unlikely end to a fascinating evening, and yet another bizarre entry on Jah Wobble's determinedly unique CV.
ยท At the Flowerpot, Derby (01332 204955), tonight. Then touring.
Bush Hall, LondonIan Gittins
Thursday July 10, 2008
The Guardian
Jah Wobble is a true maverick. Originally the bassist in John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band, Public Image Limited, his career has included a 1991 Mercury Music Prize nomination, a concept album based on the writings of William Blake and, famously, a spell driving tube trains in London.
As part of Liverpool's City of Culture celebrations, Wobble has resurfaced with Chinese Dub, a touring project that sees him weld his trademark bass throb to Chinese melodies and instrumentation. It is visually spectacular, with tonight's 22-piece ensemble featuring Tibetan and Mao singers, traditional dancers from Hangzhou and the highly theatrical Sichuan Opera Mask Changers.
This valiant attempted fusion of east and west could fall flat on its face, but it proves a remarkable success. This is partly due to Wobble's wife, Zi Lan Liao, who picks out pizzicato patterns on a zither-like guzheng as accompaniment to Mongolian singer Gu Ying Ji, crystalline female vocalist Wanq Jingqi and three graceful and acrobatic exponents of the complex Tang dynasty dance.
In the midst of this exoticism, Wobble is a trilby-sporting East End geezer, underpinning the eclectic extravagance with his dub-bass rumble and lauding his guests with entertaining Cockney asides. "This lot 'ere are something else!" he promises as the Sichuan Opera Mask Changers appear, and is proven correct as their precipitous dance routines and costume switches leave the audience boggling.
The company returns for an encore of Wobble's own Visions of You, with the Chinese dancers skanking delightedly to his rock-steady bass pulse. It is a fittingly unlikely end to a fascinating evening, and yet another bizarre entry on Jah Wobble's determinedly unique CV.
ยท At the Flowerpot, Derby (01332 204955), tonight. Then touring.
