Some new KS live songs on youtube filmed from the Anno's Africa charity gig...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nRyUtXZ_kM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPpAUoef18I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuQL32WQCfk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpE1FBQkvIo

Hmmm....

Nice tracks, although Be Merciful and True Love... have been around for ages.

But where is the rock 'n' roll? K was a rock wet dream, but with each album, Kula seem to be getting less and less rock 'n' roll. I'm really praying that the new album is not going to a be bunch of mellow acoustic tracks.

Anyone have any idea whether there are plans to rock out on the new album, or not?

OK before I say anything else, I just want to do a more definitive list of these videos cos there's actually an extra one up there. The full list is:

http://www.youtube.com/user/An...a#p/u/12/KLs1OP_HRrA <- Part 1: Forever Young (Bob Dylan)

http://www.youtube.com/user/An...a#p/u/11/3nRyUtXZ_kM <- Part 2: new song?

http://www.youtube.com/user/An...a#p/u/10/wPpAUoef18I <- Part 3: Be Merciful

http://www.youtube.com/user/An...ca#p/u/9/fuQL32WQCfk <- Part 4: True Love Will Find You In The End (Daniel Johnston)

http://www.youtube.com/user/An...ca#p/u/7/XpE1FBQkvIo <- Part 6: Money (Barrett Strong)

There's also a part 5 uploaded, but it's just "Be Merciful" again, which makes me wonder if there was meant to be a sixth song that was supposed to be uploaded in its place.

That's weird, I couldn't find part 1 before so thought it must have been another error, along with the 'putting Be Merciful up twice' error. Does anyone know how recent this was? Nice new guitar Crispian has got there. Shame they played so many covers and only one new song.

OK having gotten that out of the way, some more observations. These seem to have been recorded on 27th September, according to this link. I was going to launch into one of my occasional "why was no-one told in advance?!" rants, but the fact that it's described as a launch party means it might've been private anyway for all I know. And also the fact that it was professionaly filmed and uploaded means at least this time we get to see what we missed.

Also, Ben Castle (who guests on three of the tracks) usually plays with Duke Special, which is a kind of odd personal coincidence for me as I've watched him play multiple times of late due to the residence DS is doing at the National Theatre at the moment.

Thirdly, it's rare to see Crispian play that blonde Les Paul; in fact I can't remember any other occasion apart from when they did GWYD on The White Room back in '96.

I need to listen to the new song - if that's what it is, and not some obscure cover - a few more times to decide properly what I think of it, but I like it a lot at first hearing.

quote:

Originally posted by sgt.8:
That's weird, I couldn't find part 1 before so thought it must have been another error, along with the 'putting Be Merciful up twice' error. Does anyone know how recent this was? Nice new guitar Crispian has got there. Shame they played so many covers and only one new song.

Pffft I just posted the date; our messages crossed. And the guitar isn't new :P

But thanks for finding these links anyway

Thanks for the links! Yay @ (possible) new songs.

Don't know what launch parties are so I'll refrain from ranting, other than a simple "butbutbut". C'mon, it's obligatory.


It's funny that almost everything they played (at least from what's been uploaded) are covers. Other than the possible new song their only original was Be Merciful (hoepfully, this means there's a chance Be MErciful is planned to finally be officially released in album number 4[GRRRRR where is the dash sign on British keyboards!]?)
I wonder if this means they're still unsure about their new songs, or just the nature of the event....

Also, random thoughts do to the fact I really love Be Merciful and have an obsessive personality:

It starts looking more and more as if the guitar solo is officially out of the song. Which would be a terrible shame cos the end solo is magnificent. I now know what my ultimate Be Merciful version should be - exactly the way the played it here (with the flute and all, incredible touch!) but WITh that bloody solo in the end!

quote:

Originally posted by Pitry, Queen of Shrooms:
I wonder if this means they're still unsure about their new songs, or just the nature of the event....

I think it's probably just the nature of the event. iirc they played "Forever Young" at the previous Anno Birkin tribute they appeared at also, I guess the lyrics are somewhat appropriate. There was probably an element of not wanting to turn a benefit for someone else into too much of a me-me-me thing, which is how it might have looked if they'd just played a bunch of their own songs.

I'm sure the next time they play a proper gig there will be plenty of new songs. I just hope it's soon :P

quote:

Originally posted by drykid:

quote:

Originally posted by Pitry, Queen of Shrooms:
I wonder if this means they're still unsure about their new songs, or just the nature of the event....

I think it's probably just the nature of the event. iirc they played "Forever Young" at the previous Anno Birkin tribute they appeared at also, I guess the lyrics are somewhat appropriate. There was probably an element of not wanting to turn a benefit for someone else into too much of a me-me-me thing, which is how it might have looked if they'd just played a bunch of their own songs.

Although, one might argue that the people who're gonna be in this kind of an event aren't ks fan in the first place and are unlikely to recognise what is a kula song/ new kula song/ cover of someone like Daniel Johnston who isn't that well known.

quote:

I'm sure the next time they play a proper gig there will be plenty of new songs. I just hope it's soon :P

*makes a sad face* butbutbut!

quote:

Originally posted by drykid:
And the guitar isn't new :P

Yeah it did cross my mind that it might be the Grateful When You're Dead guitar, but was unsure of the colour and I doubted that he'd still have it.

quote:

Originally posted by Pitry:
Thanks for the links! Yay @ (possible) new songs.

No worries - I just decided to check recent youtube vids for the first time in about 2 months so was just lucky really. I think that second one is a KS song, who else would write a song about Peter Pan's tomb stone? But you never know.

The flute does suit the song very well. It sounds more like the original solo version - but with drums. Shame about the outro though. It might have been cut short just for this performance for time-saving or something (I hope).

quote:

Originally posted by Narayan:
Hmmm....

Nice tracks, although Be Merciful and True Love... have been around for ages.

But where is the rock 'n' roll? K was a rock wet dream, but with each album, Kula seem to be getting less and less rock 'n' roll. I'm really praying that the new album is not going to a be bunch of mellow acoustic tracks.

Anyone have any idea whether there are plans to rock out on the new album, or not?

Narayan, I agree with you. I'd love some Hey Dude, Into the Deep type stuff but I figured the nature of the event itself called for more low level accustic type tracks rather than those
rock out ones.

quote:

Originally posted by sgt.8:
Yeah it did cross my mind that it might be the Grateful When You're Dead guitar, but was unsure of the colour and I doubted that he'd still have it.

Well, I'm not 100% sure it's the same one, but it's similar:



There's some binding around the edge of the body on the GWYD guitar that I can't really see in the new videos; but that could be down to the lighting. Or he could've had it removed in the intervening time.

I get the feeling that Crispian gets sentimentally attached to guitars and doesn't get rid of them easily, even if they end up being retired from service for long periods of time.

quote:

I think that second one is a KS song, who else would write a song about Peter Pan's tomb stone? But you never know.

I think on balance it's probably a new one; but I don't want to wax lyrical about what a great new song it is and then find it's some kind of obscure Daniel Johnston B-side. It certainly has KS-ish elements. Funnily enough, on googling "Peter Pan RIP" to find lyrics that might prove it one way or another I found this instead:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/m...79011/in/set-144862/

No connection with the song, I'm sure. But it amused me that it was in India of all places. "Everything is connected", as Crispian likes to say...

quote:

Originally posted by Christine from Oz:
Narayan, I agree with you. I'd love some Hey Dude, Into the Deep type stuff but I figured the nature of the event itself called for more low level accustic type tracks rather than those
rock out ones.

I agree with this. I watched the Jane Birkin, Johnny Borell and associated speechs / poems from the same event on YT, and they're all very sombre and low-key. For Crispian to be on his knees trying to wring the mother of all solos out of his guitar on Great Hosannah would have been to totally misjudge the occasion imho.

acqoustix trax