Sunday, December 27, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Thursday, December 03, 2009
Monday, November 30, 2009
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Jann Arden - Edmonto Journal Review
CONCERT REVIEW
Jann Arden
When: Wednesday
Where: Jubilee auditorium second show tonight at 8
Sometime in the past decade or so, Jann Arden's voice became one of those that would often come to mind while you were suffering in the depths of a heartbroken, TV drama-style crisis.
On a particularly wistful bus trip you might find yourself imagining the chords of Good Mother or Insensitive scoring the ride, and it's that sentimental, somewhat cheesy place she holds in many Canadians'hearts that Arden likes to poke fun at.
Though she jokes about her songs being depressing, like she did last night about Leave Me Now, a song she's never performed live before her current tour, it's no secret that the 47-year-old Calgary chanteuse frequently sells out her concerts because audiences have come to love not only her woeful tunes, but also her notoriously wicked sense of humour.
Last night, in her first of two performances at the Jubilee Auditorium, Arden delivered a two-and-a-half-hour show chock full of old favourites and new songs, all interspersed with scathing anecdotes and her characteristic sassy banter.
The show felt more like an evening jam in the Arden family living room than a packed concert hall--this feeling hit home especially after she introduced the members of her outstanding six-piece backup band through a photo album slide show, which included childhood pictures of the musicians, as well as scenes from Arden's personal past, including some of her bad-hair decisions from the '80s.
Of course, it wasn't all comedy. Arden's vocals were strong and emotive, her performance variations refreshingly different from her album versions--particularly fun was the reggae-infused rendition of I Would Die For You.
Opening with the title track from her latest album, Free, Arden took the stage alone with a guitar, gently strumming until the curtains behind revealed the band, already jamming with enthusiasm, guitar ist Keith Scott was an immediate, skilled standout.
Looking For it, from 1994's Living Under June, followed soon behind, and after encouraging the audience to take as many flash pictures as they pleased, Arden kicked into the Nashville-style ballad The Devil Won.
The set list featured songs from nearly every Arden album, including Sleepless from Blood Red Cherry, and Wishing That from 1997's Happy?
Arden's cover of Janis Ian's At Seventeen was soft and tender, as were Where No One Knows Me and Could I Be Your Girl.
The band got to show their gusto in a rousing, powerhouse cover of Sly and the Family Stone's Higher, and Arden toned things back down with the sombre Everybody's Broken.
Arden is living proof that an artist can write 10 albums' worth of good, sad songs and still remember not take everything so darn seriously --and that crafting a memorable performance can be as simple as treating the audience like family.
© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal
Original post here
Monday, November 23, 2009
Jann Arden - Kelowna Review
Jann Arden Concert Review
November 21, 2009
Prospera Place, Kelowna
8.5 out of 10
By Mark Stone
I’ll admit it: when I got the call to review the Jann Arden concert tonight at Prospera Place I wasn’t terribly excited to go. I enjoy Arden’s music but I wouldn’t consider myself a fan. I wasn’t sure what I was in for, but I sure am glad that I went.
It would be almost impossible for anyone with a love for music not to come away from tonight’s show knowing they’ve seen not merely a good concert but a great one. Arden last played here less than a year ago on December 12th, and if tonight’s show is any indication she’s more than welcome to make an annual visit.
Despite getting off to a rather slow and almost forgettable start, from the fourth song on, Jann Arden and her extraordinary six-piece band (made up of a drummer, a keyboardist, a violinist, a bass guitarist and two guitarists) had the sparse crowd of 1,500 practically eating out of the palms of their hands. It’s ironic that although she may not be all that showy, Arden seems intent on putting on a great show. It’s not all about the music for her; she appears equally comfortable standing in the middle of the stage talking to her audience, telling stories and being genuinely funny.
When she first began her dialogue with those in attendance, she mentioned her time in Kelowna and how she almost didn’t make it here given the terrible highway conditions (she also made mention of our city in a tweet on Twitter this afternoon: “had a great walk around kelowna with midi. snow storm last night..crazy. stuck on highway for hours. glad to be here! Home tomorrow!!!”). Arden also took a jab at the first American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson, who was supposed to play here tomorrow but had to cancel. Ya know what? As much as it would have been nice to have Clarkson play here, having Jann Arden perform more than makes up for it. About half an hour through the show, Arden even engaged the audience in a brief Q&A session, encouraging questions of any type. It was hard to hear the questions, but she managed to keep it entertaining.
Highlights of the show were plentiful: some impressive new songs from her new CD Free such as the Nashville-inspired The Devil Won and the heart-wrenching Everybody’s Broken; a beautiful cover of At Seventeen by Janis Ian; two very slow but equally impactful versions of Insensitive and I Would Die For You sung back to back – and just for fun she switched things up by doing a reggae version of the latter song. The band was able to strut their stuff while Arden took a quick break and played a fabulous version of Sly and The Family Stone’s Higher. Arden isn’t kidding when she says she’s got one of the best back-up bands in the business. She also provided a ton of laughs while introducing the band by the way of a slideshow of them as kids. Her commentary was spot-on hilarious and got funnier as the photos progressed to her own family pictures.
Before I go on too much about Jann Arden, comedienne, I must talk about Jann Arden, singer. Her voice may have wavered once or twice, but this woman can sing. Her pipes are as strong as ever and she made great use of the nice acoustics (I guess it is possible to get good acoustics in Prospera). For some reason I was hearing some Alanis Morrisette in her voice – Arden’s is equally as powerful but she puts on a better show than Alanis.
My only gripe would be about the disappointing crowd. I think if people knew what they were in for and how good of a show Arden puts on, Kelowna would have easily had a full house. It was no surprise when the crowd gave her a standing ovation after her last song, Good Mother – it couldn’t have been more deserved.
Original Post below.
Jann Arden wows small but enthusiastic crowd at Prospera | Kelowna.com
Friday, November 20, 2009
Jann Arden - Vancouver Sun Review
JANN ARDEN
Wednesday night
Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Also tonight, 8 p.m.
Tickets $49-$75 from ticketmaster.ca
If Jann Arden gave her fans a bit of a scare on Tuesday night in Victoria, she was back in full force for the first of her two Vancouver performances at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on Wednesday.
Moments after she took the stage two days ago, Arden had to step away from the spotlight to recompose due to a short bout of tachycardia — accelerated heartbeats she later quipped were due in part to her tight-fitting dress.
It’s not the first time Arden has had to seek medical attention for heart problems.
In 2007, Arden was diagnosed with takotsubo, a stress-induced heart condition also known as “broken-heart syndrome.”
One can easily understand some of the pressure Arden has been under recently.
Her latest album, Free, is her first collection of original material since her eponymous 2005 effort (2007’s Uncover Me being a collection of cover songs).
For Free, the 47-year-old Calgary-bred singer also parted ways with longtime guitarist and collaborator Russell Broom, who was instrumental in penning some of Arden’s most famous songs and played alongside Arden on stage for 14 years.
And then there’s the stress of special occasions.
At Wednesday night’s show, Arden was inducted as a Vancouver “favourite” into the B.C. Entertainment Hall of Fame, a celebration that included Arden being presented with a plaque that will be on permanent display at the Orpheum, handed to the singer by Hall of Fame President Elizabeth Ball and local media celebrity and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Red Robinson.
Whew.
If anything, this “intimate evening” with Arden just proved she really shouldn’t sweat the small or the big stuff.
Fans know her material inside and out, wear their love for Arden on their sleeves, and the whole affair felt less like a concert than a big family reunion.
"Just sit back and relax," Arden told the crowd in the opening moments of the evening. "We're going to play you some songs."
Simple enough, no?
It started, of course, with the title track from her latest effort, before quickly kicking into gear with Looking For It (Finding Heaven) and Where No One Knows Me.
For some reason, it took a little while to achieve the right balance in terms of sound, the vocals finding themselves slightly drowned out at first.
Could have been nerves or the desire to hit a bit too hard too soon, perhaps, but by the time Arden and her ace musicians, which included Bryan Adams guitarist Keith Scott (filling in for Broom) as well as the amazing multi-instrumentalist Allison Cornell, settled into the Nashville-tinged The Devil Won and classic Sleepless, we were nicely balanced and sonically comfy.
But Arden's show was about much more than just getting to hear Insensitive once again (stripped down and acoustic this time around, thank you), it was also about experiencing how genuinely funny the woman is. (Seriously, someone needs to get her a comedy gig.)
Among some highlights, there was a brief Q&A where she quickly dispensed some incisive, rib-tickling answers and anecdotes -- about her fat cat that likes tampons and catnip, about her running routine ("As far as the mini-bar"), and about if she remembered Antigua ("Have we screwed?").
There was also the reggaefied version of I Would Die For You, which she hit right on the head, and talking about a song she never performed in concert until this tour, Leave Me Now.
"It's a lovely song but it's so depressing," she said before mentioning it's, quite ironically, from her Happy album. "You can lay down on the floor if you want."
The family feel didn't end with Arden's ability to have the crowd rolling in the aisles, it also came through when she introduced her band, bringing up a personal (if somewhat embarrassing) picture slideshow reminiscent of your not-so-favourite uncle’s home videos or — gasp — his excruciating diaporama marathon (but much, much funnier).
There was also the "karaoke" moment -- Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart -- where more laughter ensued as the crowd joined in ("Security!") and Arden roughed up her voice to echo Tyler's notoriously gritty delivery.
"The whiskey and slurpee period of my life comes to mind," Arden deadpanned.
Of course, Arden's specialty is songs about love, about religion, about personal insecurity and, evidently, about heartbreak (no pun intended), and she can either make you laugh and cry by simply being Jann.
It's easy enough to understand why she'll always be a favourite around here, and it was quite the emotional moment when Robinson and Ball handed her her Hall of Fame plaque, the fans leaping out of their seats for a long (and loud) ovation.
Her acceptance speech would be as tongue-in-cheek as it could possibly be, Arden standing awkwardly in the spotlight like an overwhelmed pageant winner (good time to re-cue At Seventeen, which she had covered so grippingly earlier).
"I believe in gay marriage," she half-whispered. "I believe everyone has the right to be miserable."
Good one, but no one could ever feel miserable after over two hours of such classic Jann.
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun
For more photos and original post
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/news/2238835/story.html?tab=PHOT
Monday, November 16, 2009
Jann Arden - Canadian Tour November 2009
Allison Cornell & Keith Scott on the ferry to Nanaimo for our first show, after rehearsals in Vancouver.
Keith jumps!
Maury and Hen.
Lyle Molzan.
Allison.
Keith jumps!
Maury and Hen.
Lyle Molzan.
Allison.
Friday, November 06, 2009
Digial Harinezumi Camera - with viewfinder modification
My new Digial Harinezumi camera, I superglued an old viewfinder from my Yashica Electro 35 wide angle kit, and it works pretty well for composing shots.
These are such amazing little cameras. The video quality is very much like super 8 movie film. It's only 640X480 resolution, but that just adds to it's charm. The motion is jittery too, i think it shoots at 29fps. The auto exposure has the same look as super 8 on auto as well. Here are some shots taken with it in still mode...(with some photoshop tweaks).
Below is a shot with macro on for that nice soft focus look.
Below is a shot with macro off.
Then the same shot with macro on...
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Friday, October 02, 2009
Sunday, August 09, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Monday, June 01, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Life on the Farm
is kinda laid back...
Aint much an old country boy like me cant hack...
Its early to rise, early in the sack
Thank God Im a country boy
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