R.I.P KEITH EMERSON

Keith Emerson, uma das lendas do rock progressivo dos anos 1970 e fundador da banda britânica Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP), morreu nesta sexta-feira em Santa Mónica, Los Angeles. O teclista, conhecido pela técnica apurada e prestações exuberantes em concerto, tinha 71 anos. As causas da morte não foram reveladas.

O anúncio do falecimento do músico foi feito pelos seus companheiros nos ELP, o guitarrista Greg Lake e o baterista Carl Palmer, na página da banda no Facebook.

 A nota afirmava: “Lamentamos anunciar que Keith Emerson faleceu na noite passada, na sua casa, em Santa Mónica, Los Angeles, aos 71 anos. Pedimos que respeitem a privacidade e luto dos familiares”.

 Emerson, Lake & Palmer were the quintessential progressive rock band of their time and had filled arenas with fans before ever releasing their first official album.

Back in 1969 Keith Emerson, keyboard virtuoso, was working with the group The Nice and was performing alongside new progressive band King Crimson at the Fillmore West in San Francisco. The bass player for King Crimson, Greg Lake, decided that he and Emerson might create music together and the end result was to conclude the need for a drummer. The new drummer search began with the potential candidate, Mitch Mitchell, who had been the drummer for Jimi Hendrix in his recently folded group The Experience.

The audition was proposed yet never occurred and for over forty years fans and journalist continued the audition rumor. Finally, the former manager of Cream, Robert Stigwood, offered the name of Carl Palmer, not yet 20 years old and playing with a group called Atomic Rooster and formerly with The Crazy World of Arthur Brown. Palmer was not enthusiastic about leaving a band he had spent a great amount of effort to help create but he was convinced to join after the experience of playing with Lake and Emerson.

 There were two reasons for the name Emerson, Lake & Palmer, first, to remove the focus on Emerson who had a larger name recognition at the time than the other two and second, to diminish the erroneous idea of being the “new Nice”. The new group performed their first show in Guildhall, Plymouth, on August 23, 1970 and six days later, at the Isle of Wight festival, an appearance that was a monumental event and garnered massive attention for the young musicians. “It was the biggest show any of us had ever done. The next day we were world-famous.” -Greg Lake They had signed a recording contract with Atlantic Records due to the “drawing power as a live band.” Emerson provides the story,”The president of Atlantic, Ahmet Ertegun, tells me the reason he signed us is because we could sell out 20,000-seaters before we even had a record out.

That was enough for him to think that a lot of people would go out and buy the record when it did come out.” Emerson, Lake & Palmer, their debut album was released about a month after the astonishing live performances and was mostly a selection of solo pieces. Emerson provide his arrangement of a series of classical pieces(Bach’s French Suite No. 1 in D minor, BWV 812 and Bartok’s ‘Allegro Barbaro’) along with an original organ/piano piece called the “The Three Fates”. Lake offered two ballads, the first being an extended folky work “Take a Pebble”, and the other, “Lucky Man”, a song he wrote at the age of twelve on his very first guitar. Palmer’s contribution was a drum solo called “Tank”. Due to Lake’s “Lucky Man”, the album received inordinate radio airplay and combined with the Isle of Wight performance, it became a surprise hit in America and soon their commercial success was rapidly producing international acclaim.

 The only competition remotely close to this level of achievement was their come-lately future rivals progressive rock band Yes. The signature styles of Emerson, Lake & Palmer were nailed down as progressive rock, symphonic rock and art rock and variations therein.

The music was loud and bombastic, often gloomy as far as lyrical tone follows, and the instrumentation was boundlessly majestical. ELP’s second album was Tarkus, 1971, a story of “reverse evolution” and considered to be their first successful concept album. It showcased a side long song with a variety of hard rock and comic songs, cited as a landmark work in progressive rock. Eight months later they released their third ELP album Trilogy, 1972, and manifested a distinctly mellow acoustic ballad, “From the Beginning”, that became the band’s only Top 40 single in the U.S.A. At this point the group focus was directed on international touring.

In 1973, ELP formed their own record label, Manticore, and purchased a cinema to use for their rehearsals and subsequently released what was to become their most well known studio album, Brain Salad Surgery. This collection was considered their most ambitious album yet. It was one of the first recordings to use synthesised percussion in the form of pick-ups fitted on an acoustic drum kit that triggered electronic sounds. The soon to follow tours were documented on an expansive three album live recording Welcome Back My Friends to the Show That Never Ends. ELP was almost tied with Led Zeppelin for highest grossing live band in the world near the end of 1974.

Knowing that what goes up must come down, the pendulum would soon swing toward the mirror of ELP’s success. The band had become so extravagant by 1975 and after the tours concluded in 1978, the band was no longer the “darling” they had been for the public or the critics. Emerson conceded the loss of millions of dollars during their last musical projects and stated, they(Lake and Palmer)still blame him for it, “you and your bloody orchestra”.

 What ever the blame the gentlemen had an extraordinary run of success and achievement and are wise to be grateful for the time they were “THE” international Super Group for Progressive Rock. In the mid 1980’s the band tried a new ELP as Emerson, Lake & Powell, this drummer was former Rainbow and session musician Cozy Powell. Although the group was still outstanding as performers, the original rise to fame would not be the same path for this second incarnation.

R.I.P. NANA VASCONCELOS

R.I.P. NANA VASCONCELOS

Morreu Naná Vasconcelos, um percussionista genial eleito oito vezes o melhor percussionista do mundo, morre aos 71 anos. Juvenal de Holanda Vasconcelos, mais conhecido como Naná Vasconcelos, morreu na manhã quarta-feira.

O percussionista estava internado em estado grave na Unidade de Tratamento Intensivo do hospital Unimed III, no Recife, desde a segunda-feira, 29 de fevereiro, após passar mal em um show em Salvador. Segundo o jornal Bom Dia Brasil, da rede Globo, ele morreu por complicações de um câncer de pulmão, descoberto em agosto.

No segundo semestre de 2015, Naná Vasconcelos ficou internado mais de 20 dias passando por um tratamento contra o câncer. Ele procurou a emergência do hospital após voltar de uma viagem ao Rio de Janeiro, onde apresentou o show O Bater do Coração. "Pegou todos de surpresa porque ele havia feito um raio-x do pulmão no ano passado e uma revisão geral há dois meses e nada foi encontrado. Foi tudo muito rápido, um susto", ele declarou na época.

Após o período, o percussionista foi liberado e foi otimista. "Eu tenho essa situação, e tenho que enfrentar com força, pensamento positivo. E vou enfrentar com o pensamento de que eu vou chegar lá". Apesar da doença, Naná fez questão de participar da abertura do Carnaval do Recife no Marco Zero este ano. Foi acompanhado por seus 400 batuqueiros.

Naná nasceu Juvenal de Holanda Vasconcelos, no Recife, em 2 de agosto de 1944.
Envolvido desde os 12 anos de idade com música, paixão impulsionada pelos movimentos de maracatu da região, Naná se tornou uma autoridade em instrumentos de percussão. Tanto que ganhou fama mundial na área e se tornou o único brasileiro a conquistar oito prêmios no Grammy, principal honraria da música mundial.

Autodidata, aprendeu a tocar todos os instrumentos de percussão, mas se especializou no berimbau durante os anos 1960, quando se mudou para o Rio de Janeiro, onde a carreira deslanchou. Na época, gravou com nomes como Milton Nascimento e Geraldo Vandré.

Na década de 1970, foi convidado pelo saxofonista de jazz argentino Gato Barbieri para uma turnê internacional. Eles se apresentaram nos Estados Unidos e na Europa, com destaque para o tradicional festival de jazz de Montreux, na Suíça. Naná decidiu ficar em Paris, onde morou por cinco anos e lançou seu primeiro disco Africadeus, em 1971.

Se dividiu entre o Brasil e o mundo até 1986, quando retornou de vez ao país. Durante seu período fora, incrementou o currículo. Trabalhou com músicos como B.B. King, o francês Jean-Luc Ponty, e fez trilhas sonoras de filmes como Procura-se Susan Desesperadamente, estrelado por Madonna, e Down By Law, do controverso cineasta Jim Jarmusch.

No Brasil, durante a década de 1980, passou a explorar a sonoridade de instrumentos eletrônicos, lançou novos discos, se envolveu com festivais de música e ainda colaborou com cantores como Marisa Monte, Caetano Veloso e Mundo Livre S/A.

Entre os anos 1980 e 90, foi eleito dez vezes o melhor percussionista do ano pela revista americana Down Beat, considerada a "bíblia" do jazz e do blues.

O último disco de Naná foi Sinfonia & Batuques, lançado em 2010. O músico deixa duas filhas, Jasmim Azul e Luz Morena.

R.I.P. GEORGE MARTIN 1926-2016

SIR GEORGE MARTIN foi um dos talentos mais criativos da música, produtor musical, arranjador, compositor, engenheiro sonoro, músico e maestro britânico.

TRIBUTE BRUCE GEDULDIG

American artist Bruce Geduldig passed away this week, on his 63rd birthday and in his hometown Sacramento, California.
Known worldwide for his pioneering multimedia work with San Francisco avant-garde music collective Tuxedomoon, who rode out the Reagan years in exile in Brussels, Geduldig also collaborated with Belgian partners on projects spanning the artistic spectrum from music to film to theatre.

Geduldig arrived in Brussels with Tuxedomoon in 1981. His role in the group was primarily visual. While the musicians laboured over their instruments, Geduldig’s video projections bathed the stage in light and colour. And he, with his chiselled sneer and shock of impossibly blond hair, worked the room with an improvised, abstract choreography alternately elegant and absurd.
His contributions to the group’s studio albums were rare but decisive. It is Geduldig’s whistle that opens the celebrated 1985 ballad In a Manner of Speaking.

Tuxedomoon held court in Brussels throughout the decade. Most of his bandmates would relocate in later years but Geduldig remained with his wife, the Belgian artist Bernadette Martou. He complemented his ongoing but increasingly sporadic Tuxedomoon duties with myriad collaborations. There was a chart hit with the gonzo Brussels-based electronic outfit The Weathermen. There were music videos he directed for other artists, including his long-time friends and fellow expatriates Minimal Compact. There was plenty of work - in front of and behind the camera - on television and film productions in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

Seized by wanderlust, Geduldig and Martou left Brussels in 2013. They settled briefly in Portugal before returning to Geduldig’s native soil, where Martou passed away in 2015. The widower spent his last days surrounded by family and friends.
Tuxedomoon issued an official statement describing Geduldig as “a constant feature in the live show, contributing to its unique gesamtkunst presentation” and adding, “We will miss him sorely.”

Tributes
The Bulletin spoke with three Belgian filmmakers who had worked recently with Geduldig. Ghent-based director Kris De Meester cast the actor as one of the lead characters in his 2009 film Four Roses. Geduldig later co-wrote and played a supporting role in De Meester’s Johnny Walker (2015).

“Bruce was a true artist in every sense,” De Meester says. “The way his mind worked, how he looked, how he talked, even how he moved. I was fortunate to work with him on two films. He brought something special every time. He was the kind of artist that hardly needed any direction. He worked with you and created something that was beyond your expectations.”
Brussels-based filmmaker Martine Doyen directed Geduldig in the improvised, low-budget film Tomorrow. A labour of love, the production took years and included impromptu location shoots in Belgium and Tunisia. The film was finally released in 2014.
“Bruce and Bernadette were part of my social circle for years before we worked together,” Doyen says. “I was always struck by his charisma, his humour, his soft-spoken elegance, his spirit and his piercing blue eyes. He had such presence. He embodied everything we had seen and read about the American cultural scene of the 1970s. As an actor, he was every director’s dream: intelligent, open-minded, energetic and willing to improvise. He had a rhythm that kept everyone going.”

'Tremendously impressed'
Flemish choreographer and filmmaker Wim Vandekeybus cast Geduldig as an unhinged game hunter in his 2010 film Monkey Sandwich, which premiered in Brussels before screening at the Venice International Film Festival. Vandekeybus was familiar with Geduldig’s work as a member of Tuxedomoon but the two artists had not previously met. His costume designer facilitated the introduction.

“I was looking for actors who had a good look, a good attitude and who could improvise,” Vandekeybus says. “There was no script whatsoever. I cooked dinner for the actors the night before the shoot and, with everyone gathered, I explained the basic plot. Bruce immediately came up with his character’s entire back story and motivation. He spoke softly but he had everyone in the room rapt. I was tremendously impressed.”

Vandekeybus hoped to bring Geduldig back to Belgium for a new production this year. “I was crushed both as a friend and as a filmmaker when I heard the news of his passing,” he says. “I’m in the process of writing a new movie and I was planning to invite Bruce. I was looking forward to working with him again.”

The Weathermen

The Weathermen are a semi-satirical Belgium-based electronic and pop band.

The Weathermen began as a joke. A couple of Americano-Belgians recorded some music and then sent it to a local record company via the US under the pretence they were a couple of enigmatic Americans trying to invade the European music scene. It worked and they were signed to Play It Again Sam (PIAS) Records who put out their first 12" "Old Friend Sam" in 1985.

They recruited the assistance of Tuxedomoon visual specialist Bruce Geduldig who adopted the alias of Chuck B, a debauched playboy vocalist. He brought even more humour and satire to the already amused Weathermen.The name "The Weathermen" was inspired from a line in famous folk/rock artist, Bob Dylan's song "Subterranean Homesick Blues" in which a line goes "you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows"

More singles followed, moving the band away from alternative dancey electronic music into slightly satirical poppy EBM music, but it wasn't until the 1987 that the song "Poison" brought them real attention. With tracks such as "Punishment Park", the Black Album as a whole was like the soundtrack of a dark and tongue-in-cheek movie, something like the Marx Brothers remixing William Gibson. By this time, the group had slimmed down to 'Chuck' and 'Jimmy-Joe Snark III'; who was actually mild-mannered producer and keyboardist Jean-Marc Lederman who had worked with the likes of Fad Gadget, The The and Kid Montana.
The band continued in the vein of tongue-in-cheek pop, leaving behind their early harder sound, but they failed to repeat the success of "Poison" on a commercial level.

1986 Ten Deadly Kisses /1988 The Black Album According To The Weathermen /1990 Beyond The Beyond /1992 Global 851
In 2001, a Best Of album was almost released by PIAS. Due to frustration and demands from the fanbase and a new generation who had discovered their music through research into other renowned Belgian acts such as Front 242 and A Split-Second, Jimmyjoe Snark III decided to reclaim the album from PIAS and publish it via a website. The only demands made on those downloading it being that they leave a comment in the guestbook. This brought a new legion of fans and enough interest for Jimmy-Joe & Chuck to be thawed out of storage for the creation of some new music.

The album Deeper with The Weathermen was released in 2004, followed by Embedded With The Weathermen in 2006.

In 2007, PIAS released "The Last Communiqué From The Weathermen (?)", a compilation of their work from 1985 till 2006.

In 2010, Infacted Recordings released "Ultimate Poison", a 15 tracks MCD loosely based around Poison and all its remixes, plus some unreleased tracks.

MORREU BRUCE GEDULDIG - TUXEDOMOON

Tuxedomoon’s Bruce Geduldig Dies at the Age of 63.

Bruce Geduldig, a longtime member of the San Francisco experimental synth band Tuxedomoon, died from an ongoing illness on Monday, his 63rd birthday.

Tuxedomoon co-founder Blaine L. Reininger published the news of Geguldig’s death on the band’s website, writing:

    Our erstwhile colleague and collaborator, Bruce Geduldig has died, on the occasion of his 63rd birthday, March 7, 2016. He departed from his home town, Sacramento, California, attended by his family and friends. He had been suffering for many years from liver complaints. We will miss him sorely.

Reininger and Steven Brown started Tuxedmoon in 1977 and Geduldig reportedly joined the band in 1979 to add to the band’s live performances, providing backing vocals and onstage visuals. A video artist, he had been helping Tuxedomoon member and performance artist Winston Tong with multimedia components for his theater shows before he began working with the group.

“From then on, he was a constant feature in the live show, contributing to its unique gesamtkunst presentation,” Reininger wrote.

The band released two EPs and two albums — Half-Mute (1980) and Desire (1981) — on Ralph Records before they, Geduldig included, moved to Brussels; they felt their sound fit better in Europe’s growing electronic music scene.

After releasing five more albums, the band would break up in the ’90s, but reunite less than a decade later for a show in Tel Aviv. Not long after, they would return to recording and playing live. Since 2004, they have released five new albums.

But Tuxedomoon wasn’t Geduldig’s only musical endeavor — he fronted the satirical electronic pop band The Weathermen for many years, releasing several albums and garnering attention with their song “Poison.” Later, Geduldig would start the cabaret jazz-pop group MICRODOT with fellow Tuxedomoon member Luc van Lieshout.

Since 2014, Geduldig had been living in his hometown of Sacramento with his wife, filmmaker Bernadette Martou, who he met while living in Brussels. She died in April of 2015.

tribute to Geduldig by the band Cult With No Name, which features him singing. Cult With No Name collaborated with Geduldig and Tuxedomoon in 2014.

THE RADICAL EYE+ ELTON JOHN+TATE MODERN

A Tate inaugura a exposição "The Radical Eye" em novembro.

Man Ray, Alexander Rodchenko, Andre Kertesz, Walker Evans e Dorothea Lange são alguns dos fotógrafos que vão estar incluídos na exposição The Radical Eye, que a Tate Modern, em Londres, inaugura a 10 de novembro. A exposição com mais de 150 imagens de 60 artistas será criada a partir da vasta coleção de fotografia do músico Elton John.

Refere a galeria que Elton John é o proprietário de "uma das melhores coleções particulares de fotografia". Das cerca de 7 mil imagens, os curadores da exposição escolheram, entre outras coisas, mostrar retratos de algumas figuras centrais da cultura, como Georgia O'Keefe (fotografada por Alfred Stieglitz), Edward Weston (por Tina Modotti), Jean Cocteau (por Berenice Abbott) ou Igor Stravinsky (por Edward Weston). O núcleo maior será de Man Ray - são dele, por exemplo, os retratos de Andre Breton, Max Ernst, enri Matisse, Pablo Picasso e Dora Maar.

ANDY e LARRY WACHOWSKI + LILLY e LANA WACHOWSKI

A dupla de realizadores de "Matrix" passa a ser conhecida como Irmãs Wachowski.

Uma coisa é certa: não haverá mais filmes realizados pelos Irmãos Wachowski, Andy e Larry - a dupla que se tornou conhecida por títulos como Sem Limites (1996), The Matrix (1999).

Depois de, em 2012, Larry, de 50 anos, se ter assumido como transexual, mudando o seu nome para Lana, agora foi a vez de Andy, de 48 anos, se assumir como Lilly.

Em 2012, após alguns anos de boatos, Lana Wachowski, até então conhecida como Larry, foi a primeira das duas irmãs cineastas a anunciar que era uma mulher transgênero. A partir do lançamento do filme “A Viagem”, as duas pararam de ser conhecidas como os “irmãos Wachowski”.

Alguns diretores causam revoluções na sétima arte, mudando conceitos e formas de gravar, enriquecendo a cultura pop de forma única. Os Irmãos Wachowski fazem parte desse selecto grupo de cineasta que contribuíram de forma ímpar.

 Daily Mail: "Eu sabia que, em algum momento, teria que assumir publicamente", disse Wachowski ao de jornal de Chicago Windy City Times. "Quando se vive como transexual é muito difícil escondê-lo. Eu só queria - precisava - de algum tempo para assentar as ideias, sentir-me confortável. Mas aparentemente não posso ser eu a decidir isso."

Lilly Wachowski (antes e depois) decidiu tornar pública a mudança depois de, na segunda-feira, ter sido questionada sobre o assunto por um jornalista do jornal britânico

Quando o jornalista do Daily Mail apareceu em sua casa pedindo-lhe que revelasse a sua verdadeira identidade sexual, Lilly sentiu que estava a ser ameaçada e que o jornal estava a cometer um atentado contra a sua liberdade. Mas percebeu que era o momento certo para falar. "Nós [os transexuais] continuamos a ser demonizados nos media". "Portanto, sim, sou transexual. E, sim, fiz a transição", disse Lilly Wachowski, explicando que já tinha assumido perante a mulher, a família e os amigos.

 A GLAAD - Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation reagiu ao comunicado de Lilly Wachowski congratulando-se pelo facto de ela "ser agora capaz de assumir a sua verdadeira e autêntica identidade" mas critica o facto de se ter sentido forçada a fazê-lo "antes de se sentir pronta para tal".

Reconhecidamente avessa à exposição, Lilly falou sobre preconceitos. “Ser transgênero não é fácil. Nós vivemos em um mundo com maioria de orientação de gênero binária. Isso significa que quando você é transgênero, você tem que encarar a dura realidade de passar o resto da sua vida em um mundo que é abertamente hostil contra você.”

“Então, é. Eu sou transgênero. E, é, eu passei por minha transição. Eu me assumi para meus amigos e família. A maior parte das pessoas no trabalho também. Todos estão tranquilos com isso. Sim, graças à minha irmã fabulosa eles já passaram por isso antes, mas também porque eles são pessoas fantásticas.

No texto, a directora também agradece ao apoio da esposa, Alicia Blasingame, com quem é casada desde 1991. Sem o amor e o apoio da minha esposa e amigos e família eu não estaria aqui hoje”.

Lilly Wachowski (nascida com o nome Andrew Paul "Andy" Wachowski em 29 de dezembro de 1967) e Lana Wachowski (nascida com o nome Laurence "Larry" Wachowski em 21 de junho de 1965), irmãs transgênero coletivamente conhecidas como The Wachowskis são cineastas, produtoras e roteiristas dos EUA, em Chicago, Illinois.

Lana Wachowski (antes da mudança -era Larry Wachowski)

A dupla trabalhou nos roteiros do filme Assassinos de 1995 (com Sylvester Stallone como protagonista) Antonio Bandeiras e Richard Donner na direção.

Em 1997 os irmãos deram seus primeiros passos como diretores em Ligadas pelo Desejo, filme que apresenta uma temática soft-porn.

A consagração definitiva de Lilly e Lana veio pela trilogia cinematográfica Matrix, sucesso de bilheteira e de crítica. Em 2012 foi lançado "Cloud Atlas" com roteiro/direção/produção delas. O filme foi estrelado por Tom Hanks e conta 6 diferentes histórias que vão desde o século XVIII até um futuro pós-apocalíptico.

 No entanto, a continuidade de Matrix não foi tão bem recebida pelo público. Os filmes seguintes (Reloaded e Revolution) acabaram por se perder em questões filosóficas.
 Nos anos seguintes, eles trabalharam como produtores de algumas obras bem controversas, como na obra V de Vingança, lançada em 2006, que apesar se ser um sucesso, mudou conceitos apresentados por Alan Moore na HQ de mesmo nome, agradando a crítica e incomodando os fãs.

Em 2007, mesmo não sendo creditados, eles escreveram os roteiros de Invasores, remake do filme Vampiros de alma (1956).

Em 2008 a dupla voltou as direções assumindo a responsabilidade de produzir, roteirizar e dirigir a adaptação do anime Speed Racer.  O filme teve vários problemas, inclusive com o PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) por conta de um incidente com um dos chimpanzés usados no filme. O chimpanzé foi sacrificado após morder um actor. O filme não foi bem recebido pelo público e pela crítica, tendo uma bilheteira modesta.

Um ano após todos os problemas, eles voltam a trabalhar como produtores em parceria com o diretor de V de Vingança James Mcteigue, no filme Ninja Assassino (2009)

Em 2014 lançaram do filme Jupiter Ascending, primeira criação original da dupla desde Matrix, que iria se tornar uma trilogia, mas foi um fracasso e não terá continuação; e no ano seguinte, fizeram sua estreia no Netflix com a série Sense8, cujo enredo foca em 8 pessoas bem diferentes ao redor do mundo que compartilham uma violenta visão telepática e se conectam a partir desse evento.

IGGY POP

Iggy Pop naked in Brooklyn Museum

DAVID BOWIE