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Pat Metheny Concert at Universal - Mar 4 Review

 
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
Posts: 2783
Location: Chino, CA

PostPosted: Sun Mar 06, 2005 1:02 am    Post subject: Pat Metheny Concert at Universal - Mar 4 Review Reply with quote

Just saw the Pat Metheny Group play last night with my wife at the Universal Amphitheatre in LA. That was probably the best overall music concert I've ever attended - rock, jazz, fusion, classical, whatever. The music covered the whole gamut with more textural colors with astounding musicianship all the way around than anything else I've seen before. This is the 5th time I've seen Metheny (the first was in '86) and it gets better every time. I never see a Metheny concert as a "guitar concert", more as an all-around ensemble music concert. And once again, Pat & Lyle and Co. did not disappoint.

They played the whole new album, The Way Up, as sort of the opening set and then did a "greatest hits" kind of a thing rest of the way and it all lasted 3 hours and every minute was awesome. The thing about a PMG concert is that, at times, the music is so overwhelmingly good that I just end up closing my eyes to just focus on the music and the kaleidoscope of stunning sounds. They feature more instruments and gear (both state-of-the-art high-tech to the most ancient type of acoustic instruments) in their shows than any other band I could think of. It's as orchestral as it's improvisational. To me, this is like modern "classical" music employing modern jazz virtuosity and music technology.

"The Way Up" live is an incredible experience. I had only listened to it 3 or 4 times before the concert and it was slowly sinking in, but it's definitely not one of the group's more accessible albums. It's quite challenging that sinks in the more and more you listen to it. But live, it had amazing impact. I definitely prefer this sort of structured ensemble playing than something by the likes of Dream Theater although I consider myself more of a rock fan than a jazz fan. To me, PMG isn't jazz nor rock nor fusion in the traditional ways of viewing such idioms. It's just cutting-edge contemporary instrumental music. As far as I'm concerned, this is the very pinnacle of contemporary instrumental music.

The new PMG gets a huge new boost from the addition of Antonio Sanchez on drums. Guys, this guy is da BOMB! Sanchez is beyond amazing. I have never seen a drummer like him before. I hate to use the term "best", but if someone was to ask me who the "best" drummer I ever saw was, I would now unhesitatingly shout, "Antonio Sanchez!" The mind-boggling combination of sheer speed, technical proficieny, dexterity, finesse, ability to juggle polyrhythms, power and every thing you could ask from a drummer, etc., was just beyond belief. In fact, he is now as much of a focus on the new PMG as PM and Lyle Mays are. He brings a whole new dimension to the PMG with a new type of technical virtuosity, power, youth, energy and enthusiasm. Non-musicians would be able to watch this guy play drums alone for half-an-hour - the guy is that good and that creative. My wife just kept going, "My God, he is so amazing." Truly an incredible evening...

Ironically, after the concert on the way back home, we ended up driving past the Baked Potato to get on the 101 freeway. We had just finished watching an incredible state-of-the-art concert at a premier glitzy venue with a most fanatical audience of 3000 and up constantly giving standing ovations and I couldn't help but contrast that to the tiny run-down shack known as the Baked Potato that also features some of the most incredible guitarists on the planet. The contrast was so stark. It's like, "There's something surreal about this picture..."

The Pat Metheny Group is still at the beginning of what is an extensive world tour. Here are the dates:

http://www.patmethenygroup.com/travels.cfm

If you can catch this band, do so and you will not be disappointed. There's nothing quite like seeing Pat and his group perform live. As great as they sound on disc with their studio recordings, my opinion is that they are even better live - both performance-wise and sound-wise. The band's sound will absolutely blow your mind. It's huge, loud, yet crystal clear with incredible dynamics all the way around - from little shakers and harmonicas to the most state-of-the-art high-tech keyboard gear (Lyle Mays has two PowerBooks in his rig), you hear the details of every instrument and sound effect going on. And you gotta see Antonio Sanchez in action - practically a religious experience...

But in the end, it comes down to Pat who IMO is the most diverse cutting-edge contemporary musician I could think of. I've also never seen such a wide demographics audience in a concert of a single artist/band: from mid-20's to late-50's and all races with probably as many different reasons for liking Pat as the diversity of his fans. I really think the only one who'll top this one will be Pat a few or several years later. This man still has long, long ways to go...
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johngregson



Joined: 03 Dec 2004
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Location: UK

PostPosted: Sun Mar 06, 2005 11:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sounds great! I agree, Antonio Sanchez is mindblowing - you must watch his solo performance on Modern Drummer 2003 DVD, it's phenomonal.
Thanks for the show review - it's just making me more frustrated that the PGM aren't coming Britain...
Aargh!
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Javi



Joined: 16 Nov 2004
Posts: 78
Location: Spain

PostPosted: Sun Mar 06, 2005 8:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ed, the way you described your experience in PMG, you really gonna make me go to Spain to see one of his concerts in June/July and give an incredible surprise to my lovely wife... and to myself Laughing.
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bill®



Joined: 11 Sep 2004
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 06, 2005 9:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It is a shame they are not coming to Australia.
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Carlo



Joined: 13 Sep 2004
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PostPosted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 5:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

great review Ed! It's gettin' me pumped for when he comes to play here Smile
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
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Location: Chino, CA

PostPosted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 10:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

johngregson wrote:
Sounds great! I agree, Antonio Sanchez is mindblowing - you must watch his solo performance on Modern Drummer 2003 DVD, it's phenomonal.
Thanks for the show review - it's just making me more frustrated that the PGM aren't coming Britain...
Aargh!


The tour schedule says that they will be in London on June 12. You should look into getting some seats reserved. It's odd that he's only playing one date there while playing 5 dates each in Japan and Korea. Confused I'm sure Guthrie would do all in his power to catch that show as well.
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
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Location: Chino, CA

PostPosted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 10:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Javi wrote:
Ed, the way you described your experience in PMG, you really gonna make me go to Spain to see one of his concerts in June/July and give an incredible surprise to my lovely wife... and to myself Laughing.


Go see them, Javi. You and your wife will be blown away. It's definitely music that non-guitar-freaks can enjoy. In fact, it really isn't music for guitar freaks at all.
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johngregson



Joined: 03 Dec 2004
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Location: UK

PostPosted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 10:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks! I'll definitely try and get to that - my only problem is I'm playing a rather heavy concert the night before, and travelling down to London might be a problem, but I'll certainly give it a shot!
Best,
John.
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 08, 2005 6:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Carlo wrote:
great review Ed! It's gettin' me pumped for when he comes to play here Smile


Go catch the show! You will not be disappointed. In fact, you'll be blown away - not in the way players like Guthrie, Greg Howe, Garsed, etc. will blow you away. It'll be the full package, the hugeness of it, the musical and textural variety, the drumming, the ensemble virtuosity, etc., not so much the guitar playing although Pat burns as good as ever. To me, Pat's playing has always been like a great icing on an already delicious cake.
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
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Location: Chino, CA

PostPosted: Fri Mar 11, 2005 3:46 am    Post subject: Antonio Sanchez Reply with quote

Here's Antonio's bio:

http://www.antoniosanchez.net/biography.html

This is definitely NOT your ordinary drummer! Shocked
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