Mp3s: Mission of Burma live for Burma
Posted on March 24, 2008 at 10:37 am | No Comments
Here’s something special to mark last week’s release of the remastered and expanded definitive editions of Mission of Burma‘s influential early work…
When the big run of ‘seminal’ band reunions started up a few years back, I was mostly grateful to get a chance to see some faves I’d either been too young or too far away to catch in their prime. Naturally, my cynical side worried that I’d be seeing only pale shadows of some formerly brilliant selves… I feared hints of disappointment within the good fortune.
Well, those fears were obliterated about three songs into Mission of Burma‘s hometown reunion gig at the Paradise in mid-January of 2002. Mssrs. Miller, Conley, Prescott, & new sample/looping soundman Weston put on a show, and proved definitively that it’s possible to return just as vital, energetic, and passionate as ever. Two solid post-reunion albums and dozens of performances later, MoB hasn’t come close to milking or tarnishing their legacy, only strengthening it. Hell, just as they influenced the sound (or at least the independent aesthetic) of so many bands with their early-80s work, they may also have been a deciding factor in some of those very bands getting back together in recent years. Kind of a “if they can pull it off, maybe we can, too” sorta thing. And to be sure, there’s been widely varying degrees of success among the reunited.
I figured that first reunion show would always rank as my favorite MoB performance — could anything after measure up? I’ve seen ’em a number of times in subsequent years since, and while they’ve all been great, none had the impact of that Paradise gig — until six years later, almost to the day, when they played a simpatico “Burma for Burma” benefit show at Allston’s own Great Scott. The January 29th, 2008 show was held to raise funds and awareness for the U.S. Campaign for Burma, and if only a sliver of the crowd’s enthusiasm translated into action for the cause, they did some good.
It was an intense, career-spanning, two-set performance that touched on the best of the old and the new MoB, with second-era songs measuring up to and sitting proudly beside more-than-25-year old tracks. With Great Scott’s capacity of just under 250, it felt like the sold-out crowd was seeing something special, and the band treated the show that way. Peter Prescott’s “Incredibles” t-shirt was apropos.
Here are Mp3s of the band’s full “Burma for Burma” performance, and be sure to check the links below for some video clips as well (word from the stage was that the full concert recording was to be broadcast within Burma itself). As I share this, I’d also like to note that MoB is one of the gracious bands who allow their live sets to be openly recorded and shared, and specifically made available at the Live Music Archive (where I’ll be posting higher quality files of this show soon The show below is now available there as well).
Enjoy…
Mission of Burma
live for Burma
At Great Scott
in Boston, MA
on Sunday, January 20th, 2008
set one…
01. intro
02. 1001 Pleasant Dreams
03. Let Yourself Go
04. 2wice
05. Donna Sumeria
06. This Is Not A Photograph
07. You Don’t Know Me (Four Commandments cover)
08. Spider’s Web
09. Academy Fight Song
set two…
10. Peking Spring
11. Careening With Conviction
12. Good Cheer
13. So Fuck It
14. Wounded World
15. That’s How I Escaped My Certain Fate
16. Secrets
encore
17. The Ballad Of Johnny Burma
18. That’s When I Reach For My Revolver
Some Mission of Burma links…
Their official site, MySpace page, Wikipedia entry, and Matador Records page. Also visit the U.S. Campaign for Burma site while you’re surfing and read up. Additional Audio: As I mentioned above, MoB allows fans to share live show recordings at the Live Music Archive. Matador made Mp3s and actual .wav files of the remastered version of “Max Ernst” and the live version of “Weatherbox” available here. You can also check out the full tracklistings for all three reissues there. Video: The Boston Phoenix’s On The Download blog has some great video from the show, with full clips of opener “1001 Pleasant Dreams“, “2wice“, and “Academy Fight Song“. But be warned, going to that page will simultaneously auto-load all three clips, all of which start with a loud advertisement. So turn down your audio first unless you want to be driven slightly insane. Bill T. Miller put together a six-minute video of live footage from the Burma For Burma show as well, including parts of the cause-related speeches that were given before and during the show.
Matador Records’ Matablog has been a treasure trove of cool Burma content leading up to the new releases: For audiophiles and the otherwise-curious, you can take a look at what went into remastering the definitive edition reissues straight from the originals in two video clips (part 1, part 2). They’ve also shared an old performance of “Eyes of Men”, and a clip of “Red” from one of the bonus DVDs that is included with each reissued album. Check out this five-minute EPK (electronic press kit) about the new editions as well (quicktime file). For all of the Matablog’s Burma-related content, go here.
And don’t forget to hit up a full MoB YouTube search for tons of fan-shot clips.
Photos: All my shots from the show are here. Bill T. Miller has some shots of his own here. Check out the full Mission of Burma Flickr tag search. More: Buy the remastered Mission of Burma Definite Editions relatively cheaply from Newbury Comics. The Boston Herald wrote about the band’s legacy here. Upcoming shows: Four scheduled for the summer, all in Europe. Check the band’s tour page for details on May/June shows in Barcelona, Bordeaux, Nantes, and Paris. Listen to any and all ‘Nac-hosted Mp3s at the Hype Machine.
the fine print… If anyone has an issue with these Mp3s being made available, just let me know (my contact info in the ‘nac faq). Live sets recorded with a Sony ECM-719 mic and a Sony MZ-RH10 minidisc, converted to .wav and then edited to 192kbps Mp3s. Files are made available for a limited time, and are not reposted once removed.
Last Night’s Playlist
Posted on March 21, 2008 at 9:02 am | No Comments
While you were watching ‘Lost’ last night, I was celebrating the first day of Spring over at my beloved River Gods, playing these songs by bands hitting the Boston area in the near future. Such are my duties as part of the monthly Tourfilter DJ Night, and this might have been my favorite setlist yet (I say that every time, don’t I?) — there’s such a wealth of good shows coming up…
01. British Sea Power – “Down On The Ground“
playing on Tuesday, May 13th @ the Paradise
02. Nada Surf – “Weightless“
playing on Thursday, April 10th @ the Paradise
03. The Night Marchers – “Whose Lady R U?“
playing on Thursday, May 8th @ the Middle East
04. Sons and Daughters – “This Gift“
playing on Monday, March 24th @ the Middle East Downstairs
05. Tokyo Police Club – “In A Cave“
playing on Thursday, April 24th @ the Paradise
06. Tapes ‘n Tapes – “Hang Them All“
playing on Thursday, April 17th @ the Paradise
07. The Whigs – “Right Hand On My Heart“
playing tomorrow, Saturday, March 22nd @ the Paradise
08. Blitzen Trapper – “Wild Mountain Nation“
playing on Thursday, March 27th @ the Middle East Upstairs
09. Piebald – “Our Very Own Employment Office“
playing their final shows on April 18th & 19th @ the Middle East Downstairs
10. Big Dipper – “She’s Fetching“
reuniting on Saturday, April 26th @ the Middle East Downstairs
11. Minus the Bear – “Memphis & 53rd“
playing on Sunday, April 6th @ the Paradise
12. Ra Ra Riot – “Each Year“
playing on Friday, April 25th @ the Middle East Downstairs
13. Bishop Allen – “Middle Management“
playing on Thursday, May 15th @ the Middle East Downstairs
14. Holy F*ck – “Frenchy’s“
playing tonight, Friday, March 21st @ the Middle East Upstairs
15. Rogue Wave – “Debaser” (Pixies cover)
playing on Friday, April 11th @ the Paradise
16. Liam Finn – “This Place Is Killing Me“
playing tomorrow, Saturday, March 22nd @ the Middle East Upstairs
17. Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks – “Cold Son“
playing on Thursday, April 3rd @ the Paradise
18. Joe Jackson – “It’s Different For Girls“
playing on Monday, April 7th @ the Somerville Theatre
19. The Cure – “A Strange Day“
playing on Monday, May 12th @ Agganis Arena
20. They Might Be Giants – “She’s An Angel“
playing on Friday, March 28th @ the Somerville Theatre
21. Buffalo Tom – “Birdbrain“
playing on Friday, April 25th @ the Paradise
22. The Cribs – “Men’s Needs“
playing tonight, Friday, March 21st @ the Paradise
23. French Kicks – “Abandon“
playing on Friday, April 4th @ the Middle East
24. Kelley Stoltz – “Your Reverie“
playing on Saturday, April 12th @ the Middle East Downstairs
25. Xiu Xiu – “No Friend Oh!“
playing tonight, Friday, March 21st @ the Museum of Fine Arts
26. Thao with the Get Down Stay Down – “Beat“
playing on Friday, March 21st @ the Museum of Fine Arts
27. Tilly And The Wall – “Shake It Out“
playing on Saturday, March 22nd @ the Middle East Downstairs
28. Richard Thompson – “Turning Of The Tide“
playing on Sunday, April 13th @ Club Passim
29. Colin Meloy (of the Decemberists) – “We Both Go Down Together” (live)
playing on Tuesday, April 15th @ the Somerville Theatre
30. Peter Moren (of Peter Bjorn & John) – “Social Competence“
playing on Tuesday, April 22nd @ the Middle East Downstairs
31. Destroyer – “The State“
playing on Monday, April 21st @ the Middle East Downstairs
32. Sixth Great Lake – “Cannon Beach“
The related Stratford Projects is debuting Tuesday, March 25th the Abbey Lounge
33. Shearwater – “Rooks“
playing on Friday, May 9th @ the Paradise
34. Tom Thumb – “Every Bodega“
playing tomorrow, Saturday, March 22nd at the Lily Pad
35. Glorytellers – “Awake At The Wheel“
playing on Thursday, March 27th @ the Middle East Upstairs
36. American Music Club – “Why Won’t You Stay?“
playing on Tuesday, April 22nd @ Harper’s Ferry
37. Ambulance LTD – “Heavy Lifting“
playing on Wednesday, April 2nd @ the Middle East
38. Film School – “Sick Of The Shame“
playing on Monday, April 28th @ TT the Bears
I’ll be back up in RG’s DJ booth in a couple months for Tourfilter DJ night on May 15th.