Pixel Live

[spacewaltzer]

Last night I had the privilege of seeing Cuneiform's very own Pixel live at the Cinnamon Club, Altrincham. While I've got all three of the albums, I hadn't exactly played them to death and I was keeping an open mind about the gig. I have to say that this was one of the best gigs I've been to in recent times. Most of all, I got the sense that the band were just really nice people and were clearly enjoying themselves too. There were probably around 40 people in the audience (with only a few spare seats in the small room), and I think everyone came away happy, and so they should have done, given the really high level of musicianship on show. After my experiences seeing Panzerpappa and Jaga Jazzist, I'm thinking you really can't go wrong with a Norwegian act.

And Steve F, thank goodness for the Cuneiform Artists on Tour section of your regular emails!

[Steve F.]

And Steve F, thank goodness for the Cuneiform Artists on Tour section of your regular emails!

THANK YOU. We sure try. Really glad to hear it helped you connect with a great time.

[Scrotum Scissor]

There are currently dozens of fantastic Norwegian live bands out there, but Pixel belong to the upper echelon. I've seen them five times, and they're intense, exciting, fun, challenging and damn powerful - each and every time. And there are no keys or guits.

And good news are that you'll want to hear more of the records now that you've experienced them, seeing how those are some mean songs there.

[spacewaltzer]

There are currently dozens of fantastic Norwegian live bands out there

I was reviewing what else I had that was Norwegian, and I wondered whether you'd ever seen Kjetil Møster? I'm thinking he would be pretty intense live. For some reason, though, I really enjoy listening to When You Cut Into The Present while driving at night. Don't ask me why!

[Scrotum Scissor]

^ Møster is one of those truly versatile players who'd know how to fit in almost anywhere, and for a while he was seemingly ubiquitous on the Norwegian 'post-jazz' scene. I saw him with Datarock (the band of Fredrik Saroea, a former buddy of mine who went on to big things), with one of Paal Nilssen Love's bands and with the Møster! group, who are indeed a powerhouse. He was always great.

[Jacob Holm-Lupo]

Pixel are a mind-melting live act, and they've just kept getting better through the years.
You might also enjoy Ellen Andrea Wang's two brilliant solo albums, more vocal oriented and pristinely produced.

[spacewaltzer]

I've been relistening to the Pixel albums and they are very good, but I don't think they prepare you for just how good the band are live.

Incidentally, I was looking for ane xplanation of the track title "I Have The Right To Go To Syden" and I found a good one here: https://afroginthefjord.com/2014/05/...vete-er-syden/. I think the lyrics on thio one show a lot of promise in moving away from the more conventional "relationship" themes.

[Steve F.]

That was interesting; I had no idea what or where Syden was, but I did assume it was somewhere specific!

[Scrotum Scissor]

^ Well, only Jacob and I would fully comprehend the true and full Norwegian implication and cultural connotation of "Syden" (even though it literally only reads as 'the south') - which is a kinda difficult dimension to translate. In an adequate manner, that is.

[Steve F.]

Sort of like asking a Nowegian to define 'plotz'....

[Jacob Holm-Lupo]

Sort of like asking a Nowegian to define 'plotz'....

Yeah, something like that. Actually that title refers to an interesting socio-political discussion in this country. Pretty much any government we get here vows to eliminate poverty. A hopeless promise, of course, but it gets you votes. The thing is, all things being extremely relative in this world, what exactly IS poverty in Norway? Every springtime you get articles in the newspapers with sad-looking mothers complaining about this: "I can't afford to take my children to Syden." And then there's a subsequent discussion about the prevalent "barnefattigdom" (poverty in families with children) and what we can do to make sure that all children can go to Syden.
At which point the more enlightened ones of us point out that going to Syden is not a human right, and that not being able to go to Syden by any meaningful standard is not a sign of poverty. I Norway all working folks get at least 5 weeks of paid vacation every summer - which in itself is an incredible luxury. But most Norwegians have no idea that they are unusuallt privileged, and - quite frankly - take whatever opportunity they can to whine about their privileged lives. So THAT'S what the title refers to

And to sum it up, Syden is anywhere south of Germany where you can buy cheap wine and kick back while your kids are distracted by stinging jellyfish on the beach.

[Steve F.]

And to sum it up, Syden is anywhere south of Germany where you can buy cheap wine and kick back while your kids are distracted by stinging jellyfish on the beach.