Live Music Review: Jackdog Snook @ The Warehouse

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Music Desperados - Marioposa Upshaw & Experiment Rhode
Metaverse Music
Jackdog Snook

"As a songwriter, if you can touch people and make them feel a little less alone in the world, then you've done your job." - Tom Cochrane

"Songwriting is like a Relationship you have with the audience and the audience has with you" - Brandon Heath

Rara Destiny: "Jackdog Snook is my dearest friend; best singer/songwriter I know"

M: Jackdog Snook - A songwriter; a singer; a musician; a voice as strong as a southerly buster, as sweet as yellow box honey; a a rogue; a bard; charming, risque, poignant - a storyteller with song; at one time I described Jack as incomparable. I'll stick by that i reckon.

Jackdog is in RL Brian Henderson Ward, award winning songwriter, past President of the Australian Songwriters Association and currently adminstrator of midlate.com, a website for songwriters around the world. http://midlate.com/

Ex: Jackdog is one of those rare breed of songwriters who can make you cry with one song and laugh with another. His songs can be joyful, thought provoking, silly and serious, always strongly melodic, full of musical nuance and emotion. His guitar playing is magnificent whether it be strumming or picking and his voice is strong, clear and at times sublime. On top of all that, he's a true blue Aussie. Its easy to picture him hitchhiking around Australia with his guitar.

Tonight Jack played at the Warehouse...

...one of two venues owned by Maddison Savira and Cane Janick (The Falls is their other venue). The Warehouse is just what its name implies, a straightforward venue in the sky, plain and simply there for the music. Everytime I've been there its been under the watchful eye of Maddison, a delighful, sassy Aussie.

Song Review:
Ex: Jack has too many wonderful original songs in his suitcase which can easily fill a 2 hour set but he usually throws in a few well chosen covers from Leonard Cohen to Bob Seger or even a tune or two from some of his mates from downunder. If anyone isn’t swept up in his pure professionalism and his love of music then all I can say is….Get Over It!!!!

Wonder - Jackdog Snook/aka Brian Henderson Ward
Ex: This original composition reaches out and touches your heart and soul in a way that defies explanation. It could only have been written from a place deep within and under the circumstances, must have been incredibly painful to write. The finished song is full of love for the loss of a dear friend. The lyrics are deeply poingant, the delivery exquisite and the arrangement masterful. If there is a better original song performed in SL then I would like to hear it!

M: "Wonder" is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard, bar none, end of story. It was entered in the 2008 Australian Songwriter's Competion and placed fourth in the category of spiritual songs. Why it didnt win song of the year over any other entry is something I continuallly shake my head over in disbelief. Jack tells the story that the song was written at the request of a very ill friend of his, for her funeral. Wonder evokes such imagery and emotion, its one of those songs that succeeds on every level in transcending the ordinary. " If you wonder what heaven's like..."

Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen
This classic has the unfortunate reputation of being the most covered song in SL. In my opinion, Jack's version is the best I've ever heard.
M: I agree with Ex the only one that comes close is Cylindrian. Personally, I hate when i hear audience complaints about "Hallelujah" - it is such a lyrically rich and haunting song it deserves to be heard over and over especially when done with the grace of Jackdog.
Ex: Jack's rendition is based on the original Cohen recording from his 1984 album “Various Positions”. Jackdog puts such a personal stamp on it, and sings it as if it was his own, leaving listeners in awe of the beauty of this song.

Spoon River - Michael Smith -
This wonderful song composed by Michael Smith and first popularized by singer-songwriter Steve Goodman in the mid 1970’s. This lovely lilting gem of a song, about the era of riverboat gamblers, fits Jackdog’s style perfectly - confidently sung and played in his laid back Aussie style, it will have you waltzing with your sweetheart across the dancefloor.

Nobody Do - original Jackdog Snook / aka Brian Henderson Ward
Nobody Do is a poppy gem of a song, a plea to convince the listener no one can be found to love the singer as much as the listener does. But another reason this song stands out is that Jack has turned it into a song built around SL and the net. He sent Nobody Do out as an MP3 to many singers and they laid down vocals and returned it to Jack. Then Jack sent it to SL Musician Trowser Boa who added a great sax track ..To hear a great version of Nobody Do, open Jessy Sommers's profile. Well done Jess and good on ya Jack for sharing your music with other singers and musicians.

On a final note, Jack has recently announced he has a CD coming out in the near future so all fans of jack's music rejoice :)

http://midlate.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmeBrg63ySo&feature=PlayList&p=3B65988B75C0DF51&playnext=1&index=1 (Jackdog/BHWard "Crazy")
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yghangexfHA (Jackdog in SL - Spoon River)

Live Music Review: MichelleD Ecksol and Scott Dockal @ Prim Economy Music Park

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Music Desperados - Marioposa Upshaw & Experiment Rhode
Metaverse Music

MichelleD Ecksol and Scott Dockal @ Prim Economy Music Park
Feb. 5 2009 9pm SL

Michelle's voice reminds me of honey. Sweet, rich, down to earth, golden. She can take on songs by Bonnie Raitt to Norah Jones; from Stevie Nicks to the Indigo Girls and wrap that golden voice around them and make them distinctively her own. Tonight's show featured many songs in harmony with Scott Dockal, Michelle's RL husband. Both Michelle and Scott play acoustic guitar with skill and heart; occasionally Scott sings lead and is the sole guitar, while Michelle plays the African drum the Djembe, which adds a nice percussive heartbeat - a refreshing musical treat.

Michelle and Scott met in 1998 and have toured across America for the past 11 years. They have four cd's to their credit and are 2 time finalsts of the Kerrville Music Festival Songwriter's Contest.

Today's venue, Prim Economy Music Park, was created by DrJohn Lane; Music Park is...

...aptly named as it is a park-like setting, very open-air and grassy with a large stage dominating one end. It's a really comfortable setting for musicians and their audiences, with a friendly relaxed atmosphere, perfect for sitting on the grass or dancing. DrJohn provides the most dance-packed dance balls around and its great to be presented with fresh and new dances to try. Hats off to you Dr John for your lovely venue and for providing your guests with a great experience and your artists a great stage. (Michelle plays here every Sunday and Thursday at Prim Economy Music Park 9 PM http://slurl.com/secondlife/Isere/192/146/351)

There is no doubt as Michelle and Scott weave their way thru their well-chosen set list, that they are professional musicians and Michelle has an easy going, warm and friendly banter with their audience. They definitely follow their muse, who appears to be a wild-tressed gypsy of Topanga Canyon, and they go with the flow of where she leads them; tonight she pointed them in the direction of harmonies, and their set comprised of interesting songs by American songwriters were full of their sweet voices dancing in harmony with each other.

We have chosen four songs for comment:
Ex: The opening song of tonight's set was the magnificent "Angel From Montrgomery" written by John Prine who is finally getting the respect, attention and appreciation he so richly deserves. This song has been covered by such artists as Bonnie Raitt, Ben Harper and the Dave Matthews Band - Michelle and Scott got to the heart and soul of the lyric and presented a compelling rendition.

M: I can't tell you how impressed I was to hear Scott and Michelle cover Todd Rundgren's "I Saw The Light". Scott played solo guitar and sang lead while Michelle punctuated with her steady drumming on the Djembe and her sweet harmony. I love to see musicians make interesting choices, and this is what covering a Todd Rundgren song means to me. An interesting, intelligent, and somewhat daring musical choice perfectly realized.

Ex: "Helplessly Hoping" - is a harmony duo's flight into the unknown in as much as it will be hit or miss - if the harmony is not spot on, you can easily crash and burn. Tonight Michelle and Scott nailed the tight harmonies and this classic 1969 Crosby, Stills and Nash song flew high on the wings of their voices and guitar playing.

M: "Topanga Canyon" original by Scott & Michelle
the lyrics say it all:
"They plan to marry at the beach, just them and their preacher, the witnesses the wind and the sea; as far as they can tell the dreams are coming true, as long as they're together, can run free; free spirits for Topanga Canyon, headed for the western sky, they set their hearts upon Topanga Canyon, everybody else can say goodnight".

Say goodnight, just for tonight Michelle and Scott. Thanks for being free spirits and carrying us away on the winds that whistle thru Topanga Canyon.

http://www.dalziel.net
http://www.myspace.com/scottmichelledalziel
http://www.thesixtyone.com/mdalmusic09/song/Topanga+Canyon/41055/

Live Music Review: Mash Rhode @ Cuddler's Cove

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Music Desperados - Marioposa Upshaw & Experiment Rhode
Metaverse Music
Mash Rhode

" Last night as I lay dreaming of pleasant days gone by,
Me mind bein´ bent on rambling to Ireland I did fly,
I stepped on board a vision and followed with the will,
When next I came to anchor at the cross near Spancil Hill."

"dia duit gach duine agus failte go dti Cuddlers Cove"
hello everyone and welcome to Cuddlers Cove"

Mash Rhode is a singer/guitar player from Dublin, Ireland, which is evidenced from the moment he approaches the mic onstage and starts speaking over the stream. Mash is Dublin Ireland - He is the streets, Fibber Magees, the Half Penny Bridge over the Liffey, toast on one side, and a pint of Guinness.

M: Mash is self-admittedly, a "chord basher" who misplaces lyrics, says whoops when he messes up...

...reads the chat and giggles at the comments. But none of that matters, in fact it is part of what makes him so real, as if you're sharing your favorite songs with a friend. Mash has the ability to charm everyone in any gathered audience, because he loves people but even more, he loves music, is passionate about it, and it shows thru his strumming and his singing. He has this uncanny ability to chose songs which not only fit his vocal style, but honor his musical past and present. In the words of a mutual friend and brilliant musician, Russell Eponym: "Mash has such a raw talent, and he takes some great chances musically" (thanks Russell). Thru Mash, I learned about the music of Paul Weller, and the Zutons; JJ Cale and Plain White T's. I thought I knew alot about music, but he taught me more.

Today, Mash was the second act of Crazy Saturday at Cuddlers Cove - the special venue already described in our previous reviews of Russell Eponym and Quinton Whitman. Due in no small part to the magic of owners Suka Nishi and Quinton Whitman, Cuddlers is one of Mash's favorite venues to play.

Ex: Mash has a love of music that goes beyond his singing and playing, making for an entertaining show that will always keep your toes tapping if not your whole body dancing! (M: which is why he has such a loyal following that keeps coming back to hear him over and over). He always mixes his set lists with classic songs from the sixties by The Beatles, The Yardbirds and The Who etc. along with slightly obscure gems from the past 10 years from bands like Plain White T'S and Cast. Mash's exhuburance allows him to hold an audience in the palm of his hand and have them singing along and contributing to the songs like no other artist I have seen.

Ex: Mash's love for the 60's, an era of wonderful music from his youth, is evident in his repetoire. He especially loves The Beatles and will usually sprinkle 2 or 3 Lennon/McCartney classics in his sets. I must briefly make mention of one - "Blackbird". This song is a particularly difficult song to perform but Mash plays it note for note without a single mistake!! ( M: usually :) Worth the price of admission alone. Me tips me hat to ya!

Ex: Cry, Baby, Cry (The Beatles, 1968). This amazing John Lennon song is featured on The Beatles 1968 double album known as "The White Album". This song, that dosen't receive much credit amongst The Beatles glorious canon of music, is deserving of much more attention. Today, Mash gave it that attention - a lovely rendition that highlighted the wonderful wordplay Lennon instilled in this gem of a song. Mash articulates each and every word that brings the song alive in a way I have not heard before. Maybe its his rich Irish brogue or just his skill as a songsmith, but this song sounded as fresh as the first day I heard it so many years ago!

Ex: "Hey There Delilah" (Plain White T's): Call me old-fashioned, but until Mash played this song, I had never ever heard of it despite it being a US #1 and UK #2 hit in 2007 for the band "Plain White T's" from Chicago. It is such a catchy tune, I doubt many would not leave Mash's gig without it ringing in their ears! This song, in Mash's capable hands, now has a UK sound, transforming it into a poppy folk song rather than merely another pop song. A highlight of Mash's setlist!
Mari: "Heart to Hang Onto" (Pete Townsend) - When Mash introduced this song for the first time, I fell in love with it, so much so that I looked it up on Youtube and found a bad clip of Pete performing it on the David Letterman show...with....Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. I loved Townsend's lyric - "Give me a heart to hang onto
Give me a soul that's tailored new, Give me a heart to hang onto, A heart to hang onto" - and i loved how Mash made it his own. This song is deceptively simple, and deeply poignant. Don't we all need a heart to hang onto?

2,3,4,5,6,7....

Mash has the ability to make you feel transported from any venue and welcomed into his in home studio, where you might find a bottle of bailey's, a floor covered with stained lyrics (is there someone holding them up for him to read?) and various papers, half-full glasses, over flowing ashtrays - Mash would offer you a pint, ask you to pull up a chair, and use the irish glamour to make you feel right at home, sharing musical stories from his youth and pulling you into his heart felt songs. It's an Irish ting.

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=oD6dvRGKeBk
http://www.myspace.com/chordbasher

Live Music Review: Quinton Whitman @ Cuddlers Cove

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Music Desperados - Marioposa Upshaw & Experiment Rhode
Metaverse Music
Quinton Whitman

M: I love Saturday monrings; whether I've been up most the night working on art, or jumping from venue to venue listening to live music...I look forward to the clock hitting 7amSL time.. because that means its time to go to Cuddler's Cove. Cuddler's Cove is one of my favorite venues in SL. Its a beach venue, lots of sand in front of a tiki sort of wooden stage.. but its not the aesthetics of Cuddler's that makes it special to me.. its the atmosphere. Some kind of mysterious voodoo magic happens at Cuddler's every saturday morning... something in the air .. its the line up of musicians no doubt, but its something more, more than the music.. its an atmosphere of joy and support and appreciation; you can read it in the intelligent, witty banter of the crowd, but I think truly the atmosphere of Cuddler's starts with the venue owners, Suka Nisha and Quinton Whitman.. and Quinton generally takes the stage first on Saturday mornings at 7amSL and works his own musical magic, setting the mood and tone for each act that follows.

I wish I could accurately describe Quinton's voice.. the first word that comes to me is "earthy" - deep, low down, rich and earthy, like something you want to hold in your hands and let it sift thru your fingers...

...soil so rich that strong grain or a mighty oak tree would flourish in it; but its also smooth like fine rich molasses, and growly and gravely, like a stony path in some dark mysterious forest.. and baby you want to walk that path with Quinton, because even tho its a little dangerous, a little sexy, its also irresistable.

Q hails from West Virgina but thats not what i hear in his voice.. i hear something on the wind - like some long lost relation from scotland or ireland whispering and beckoning, reminding us of music deep in tradition Q honors musical tradition .. you can see it in his choice of songs.. but what makes his deep set list so entrancing is the way he can take a song you've heard a thousand times before, and wrap that voice around it, and make it his very own.

Ex: Q's repetoire is a journey through the last 80 years of music, like a musical ride on one of those old trains that winds its way thru mountains and valleys, rocking and swaying, spewing smoke and steam, with unexpected stops along the way - each song is interpreted in a unique way and conjures stories that will have you thinking deeply about life in general - just like his opening song this Saturday morning, "City of New Orleans" written by Steve Goodman and made popular by Arlo Guthrie.

We like to poke around a musicians set list, and while evey song Q interrprets is worth mentioning, we will restrain ourselves and share our thoughts on just these:

Ex: "For What its Worth." / "Cowgirl in the Sand" is a masterful blending, highlighting two of rock's foremost troubadours, Stephen Stills and Neil Young - "For What its Worth" is a protest song from the mid 60's that still is topical even today unfortunately. Written By Stephen Stills as a member of the amazing band "Buffalo Springfield". Q took it's catchy melody and segued it into a song from the Springfield's other famous member Neil Young. The song in question is his tour-de- force "Cowgirl in The Sand" from 1969. Powerful strumming and magnificent delivery of two archetypal 60's songs - A highlight of Q's set.

"Catch the Wind" - Donovan: Lyric -" When rain has hung the leaves with tears, I want you near, To kill my fears, To help me to leave all my blues behind / For standing in your heart Is where I wanna be,/And I long to be, Ah, but I may as well try and catch the wind;" It's a forlorn love song, a song of longing.. he wants to be in her heart, but he "may as well catch the wind" - I had listened to this song many, many times but never really 'heard' it until Q sang it in his style, I didnt recognize it at first, so I listened intently to it..an example of how he reinteprets songs and makes them his own.

M: Ghost Riders in The Sky (Stan Jones, 1948) (made famous by Vaughn Monroe in 1949); House of The Rising Sun (Traditional) (First versions by Roy Acuff in 1938 & Woody Guthrie in 1941) - these two songs caught my attention - "Ghost Riders in the Sky" because when i first heard the guitar.. and the first part of the lyric.. i thought.. i know this..why do i know this? and then i heard Dick Dale's version, and Frankie Laine's version playing in my head.. and i thought.. wow, just brilliant; With House of the Rising Sun, i thought back to my own childlike attempts at playing my first six string, and the fact that this song, which has been covered by nearly every musician who puts guitar in hand, was made totally and completely new, fresh and unique by Q. and if thats not a testimony to musicianship, what is?

The Parting Glass: Traditional song, often sung at the end of a gathering of friends. It was allegedly the most popular song sung in both Scotland and Ireland before Robert Burns wrote "Auld Lang Syne". Q sings this acapella, often the closing song of his set. The first time I heard him sing this,Ii was mezmorized, I hung on each word, each note; for when a singer comes out from behind his guitar, and offers only his voice, that is the testimony that your voice is your instrument It takes courage to relinquish your guitar and stand alone - you, your voice, the audience - and with this song, Q manages to take you straight to a neighbourhood pub, a gathering of friends, and makes you feel cherished and that you know, you know - you'll come back again.
We urge you to attend any set by Quinton Whitman.. We guarantee "joy will be with you all".

http://www.tallanwhite.com/
http://www.thesixtyone.com/Tallanwhite/
Youtube

Live Music Review: Russell Eponym

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Music Desperados - Marioposa Upshaw & Experiment Rhode
Metaverse Music
Russell Eponym

Hello Metaverse Music..welcome to the first post by your intrepid reviewers Experiment Rhode and Mariposa Upshaw, the Music Desperados. Our motto is Sin temor, sin favoritismo (no fear, no favoritism)

Russell Eponym
@ Cuddlers Cove 9amSL time Saturday January 17th and
The Wild Rover 5amSL time Sunday January 18th
For our debut, it is our pleasure to present a review of two shows by the immensely talented Russell Eponym, gentleman guitarist, romantic squire and songsmith. Russell has returned to SL after an absence, and we are of the opinon that the musical audiences of SL are much the better for his return.

Russell is an accomplished guitarist as well as a superb harmonica player - his finger picking is of the highest calibre and his eloquent vocal style, reminisent of the finest British thespians of the West End Theatre District, is rich and engaging- whether he is singing one of his original compositions, or any of his superbly selected covers. Russell shares his vast knowledge and joy in each song he presents with his audience, demonstrating his rare ability to make each audience member a part of his personal musical journey.

The first show was at the wonderful Cuddler's Cove, owned by Suka Nishi and Quinton Whitman, two of the warmest, supportive venue owners in SL...

...their sincere love of music and appreciation of musicians (Quinton being a very talented singer/musician himself), is readily apparent in all they do here. Cuddlers Cove is a magical venue indeed.
The second venue was Pauly Zimmer's Wild Rover, a warm and friendly pub with a great stage, a perfect setting for an engaging performer such as Mr. Eponym.


Russell's set list inludes covers by such artists as Bob Dylan (Boots of Spanish Leather, Don't Think Twice, its Alright; Love Minus Zero -No Limit); Donovan (Jersey Thursday, Colours and Catch the Wind); John Prine (The Speed of the Sound of Lonliness) and The Rev. Gary Davis (Cocaine, Candyman) Russell also presented a wonderfully crafted medley of Summertime, It Ain't Necessarily So, and Hit the Road Jack, finishing full circle back to Summertime. It should be noted that in the traditional blues song Candyman, Russell's finger picking increases in velocity setting the strings virtually on fire, and he never misses a note.

Regarding Russell's original compositions, we have chosen three for comment:
One Embrace - Russell's second life partner and rl wife Marianne Madrigal wrote the lyrics for this lovely song. It must be said that the love shared between Russell and Marianne is most evident, not only in the songs he presents, but in the way they communicate with each other during each performance. The audience cannot help but be wrapped in the warm embrace of the genuine and sincere love they have for each other, a rare and lovely thing to behold.

You Have No Eyes - this very special poignant song, speaks to the issues of discrimination and making judgments...if it fails to reach your heart, then you might want to see if your heart is where it should be. A sample of the lyric: "you dont have eyes to see my dreams, although you think you know me well, you've never gone behind the scenes, or sunk within my careless spell".

Sonnet - the lyrics of this original composition combine two poems, for Russell's dear Marianne. It is a melodious testimony to the love they share.

Your intrepid reviewers urge you to catch one of Russell's show's ..when you do, we guarantee that you will be musically embraced with his talent, warmth, and his extraordinary passion for music and musical stories.

Oh for those inquiring minds: An eponym is a person, whether real or fictitious, after whom a particular place, tribe, era, discovery, or other item is named or thought to be named. Someone eponymous is someone that gives their name to something, i.e. Julian, the eponymous owner of the famous restaurant Julian's Castle.

For more of Russell:
http://www.thesixtyone.com/ukcowboysinger/collection/all
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1AxuY1FASQ

From the Editor's Desk: A Gift From Metaverse Music

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music

I know it can get all crazy here at Metaverse Music with all the emotions so high. I thank everyone who have read anything here at Metaverse Music and have commented.

This is the Greensleeves track in my new album "A PK Christmas." It is available at my gallery if you are interested. It's also on my iTunes podcast free, but you'll have to dig through them cause different tracks came from different performances. Nevertheless this track is my gift to everyone.

Yes, you may review this here if you like. Yes you can say whatever you want, just keep it clean - language wise. I'm always interested in your honest opinions. I share mine here.

Merry Christmas; Happy Holiday; Season Greetings; Happy New Years!

Track after the jump...

Artist: Paul Kwo / Enniv Zarf in Second Life
Album: A PK Christmas
Track: Tommy's Night <<--- FREE! (Click on the link to download the track FREE for your private use and enjoyment! By downloading, you agree to not forward the track to any other party. Please share this track only by referring others to this website. Your support is greatly appreciated!)

PK MUSIC PLAYER: (Requires Quicktime)


AFTERTHOUGHT:

We may not always agree. You may not even like me because of some of the stuff I said. And I may be in complete opposition to what you said. But I like you nevertheless. I see this site as a critical look at what we are all doing in Second Life in terms of music. Whether or not you agree with me on specific reviews, I have caused people to pay be critical. Even if it is about how I am reviewing the music and the set. I think those are all wonderful and valid points everyone is making. I get defensive too sometimes, I'm only human. In the end, I do believe everyone is trying to do what they think is best in their eyes.

Well enjoy the music, or not!

Take care everyone and I will see you all around!

Live Music Review: Vanny Wilder @ Jerry Garcia Amphitheatre

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Vanny Wilder
Jerry Garcia Amphitheater

Since the last set was only half an hour, I figured I'd stay for this next set too.

Vanny does mostly instrumental works, but does add voice in on the occasion. And he knows his guitar very well, and he plays it very well. He has fantastic energy that is controlled all the time. Never going too far. But that may or may not be a good thing depending on what you personally like.

For me, sometimes it's a great thing. But at times I would like to hear him about about to break that guitar too, which I'm pretty sure he has no problem doing. Still though he's absolutely a fantastic musician and guitar player and does it all effortlessly.

Vanny opened his set with what he usually opened with...

...and it's a pretty fun and groovy lick. But I think the fact that he played it so many times, after hearing the rest of the concert I realized how uninspired that was comparative to the rest of what he played. Don't get me wrong, I didn't realize that until afterward because the rest of the set was so much more interesting and moving then that first piece. The one thing I did think initially was that the piece did run a little too long. By the end of it, I sort of wanted him to just move on to something else or do something crazy.

The rest of the set really showed how much sound he can get out of his instrument. He does everything that I would expect from a guitar player. He's probably one of the best electric guitar player I have heard so far in Second Life. Though I am sure a few others could play a mean one, but since they sing most of the time they rarely show off what they can do with the guitar. And I can't compare the electric stuff with the acoustic stuff, they are just too different.

His third song he actually sang some stuff. But he really muffled up his voice and mumbled his words. He also let the instrument dominate and cover his voice. It came across more like it's half spoken and half sung and it worked well. The voice added this earthy, bluesy quality to the music that I thought gave it a neat variation. It almost felt like it as a random bum off the street trying to mumble something to me. Vanny really got that Stevie Ray electric blues feel down.

Vanny really grew on me over the half hour. His Latin Rumba had some really fantastic sounds that I absolutely enjoyed. Though I did find that with his voice and the electric blues, I'm not sure I buy into it 100%. But it was still absolutely fascinating to hear though even for just once.

He had great energy and his music is there. But I almost wanted him to be just a little less controlled and more wild. I always just feel like that this kind of electric blues just is the unabashed form of blues, with no intention of holding back. So I was kind of hoping for something super sick and super sweet. He gave me just sick and sweet, which I will still settle for any day.

Btw, he also builds and sells household items. We all do multiple things in SL, so should definitely go and check that out sometimes.

Live Music Review: Grateful Stryker @ Jerry Garcia Amphitheatre

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Grateful Stryker
Jerry Garcia Amphitheatre
3.5 stars out of 5 stars

Ok, here's a posting I saw today so I thought to check it out:

"Hiya Everyone!!! Grateful is on FIRE!!! Here in San Fran, come on over and join the party, while we listen to this awesome musician and his AMAZING way of mixing originality and passion into everything he plays!!!"

Well it's nice to hear some original music in Second Life. It's always a welcomed thing. It's much needed really. And Grateful does have a unique voice that kind of has this mix of a heavy metal band like quality like KISS, but mixed in with a little bit of Elvis. I'm talking more about the quality of his voice, not so much the style of his singing.

Now I wouldn't considering him an amazing singer, but he is a good musician. But he does sound passionate about what he is singing and what he has to offer and that's definitely a welcomed bonus. So the post is correct in that regard.

What I did like about Grateful was some of his instrumental solo work...

...But I wouldn't think of him as the best musician around as I have heard others who are definitely much more interesting with an original sound here in Second Life. He does play well, and he sings decently. His tunes are good too. But that doesn't say to me an amazing musician with an awesome mix of originality and passion. But if you like him enough, you may call him that. So here in the case of Grateful, I can understand why some people would call him that.

My one biggest problem really is that I don't really think his voice type fits what he's singing and wrote. I think his voice is much more suited for hard rock, heavy metal type music. But his songs are almost too sweet and nice. It had a certain type of 80's band feel to his singing and it just didn't mesh in my mind. But I can reckon that this is more of my subjective choice in taste. Perhaps it is this sound that some people may be referring to as original and amazing. But for me, I rather hear him sing more of a screaming type of songs and let someone else sing the songs he's written.

It was a half hour set and it's a different kind of a half hour, it's pretty different. It's neat to listen to. He is a good as a musician. He plays well, sings decently and has good tunes. Does that make an amazing musician? Probably not in my books. Just a good one who has needs to polish his voice just a little bit more.

Live Music Review: Pato Milo @ Bay Vista

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Pato Milo
Bay Vista
3 stars out of 5 stars

Alright, it's late night and I'm in need of doing a review. What do I do?

I get this IM from Second Life Music group that said:

"Pato Milo Live @ Rainforest 10PM : Yahhhh You Latenight Partiers,,,You know whats up...Get Your pixels on over here to party in the rain with SLs most rockin Duckie!! rowboat attached!"

This sounds like fun. I know I'm known all about getting into the quality of the music and the singing. But I am absolutely alright with entertainers if they are here to entertain. But they better be darn well entertaining.

Pato isn't all that fantastic when it comes to singing. He has a pleasant voice though, and I like listening to his voice quality. He just doesn't sing very well. But he does like to give his banter between songs, rambling about really nothing important. Which is fine since he’s pitching himself more of a party guy and an entertainer.

My favorite part of Pato's act...

...is his Banjo. I was told it is a 6 strings banjo that is played like a guitar. But I have nothing against that as long as he delivers the sound, and as long as it's not a computer playing a MIDI instrument. Yes, another performer Winters Kanto was caught with this caught by one of his venue host. In fact he IMed me in the middle of this concert. I will definitely write up a post about this.

But since Pato is playing the Banjo himself, it really doesn't matter to me. Some people call it a cheater's Banjo, but would I call someone who's playing keyboard synths of non-piano sounds a cheater? It takes just as much skill to play that well. I love Pato's Banjo. Whenever that's out, I feel like Pato's on.

That was about it though for me. He wasn't a bad entertainer, but he wasn't good either. I wasn't really that interested in what he was saying or singing or doing, but I didn't mind him being there either. It was more like background noise to add to the atmosphere while I chatted with my friends and did my things. Sometimes I would look up and enjoy the brief moments of interest. But that's about it. There were moments here and there that were kind of interesting. But honestly nothing was really memorable. There are other entertainers in Second Life that is just memorable and catchy (“Sex and beer” comes to mind) and I just can't get enough of. Pato isn't one of them.

But he is relatable. I think that's his catch, I can relate to him. He feels real. So I don't mind at all having him there just to be real. It has this quality of being in a real life coffee shop in NYC or some other major metropolitan area. There's some guy doing his thing there. Nothing great; nothing horrific. He’s just there to add to the ambience. That is what Pato is to me. Nothing wrong with that, just nothing special. He's just there but real.

I don't know if I will say he should change it or do something different if this is his thing. I don't have any problems with him being there. But if he wants to be more then just being there, he needs to move to a more extreme place. He's not deadpan enough to be deadpan. He's also not crazy enough to be wild. He's not funny enough to make me pee in my pants. I'm just not sure where he really wants to go with his act and I'm not sure he is sure either.

Well the notice read party with rockin' duckies. I guess I got that. But it's not the wild crazy musician parties, it's more of a chill and mellow out with your friend type of party.

By the way, I had to write this review the next day cause while I was at the concert I got like 4 IM’s all trying to talk to me about different issues. So I just jotted down some notes as I sat and chatted.

Live Music Review: Izabela Jaworower @ Appassionato Resort

Second Life Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Originally for Classical Music in Second Life
Izabela Jaworower
Appassioinato Resort

I heard Young Zeid a few weeks ago and heard Izabela at a duo concert with Young last week. But I wanted to do a review on just Izabela and so I just sat and enjoyed the last concert and didn't review that. For your information their duo concerts are not double stacked streams, they are actually in the same location performing.

She started off the concert with an "encore" piece, Schumann’s "Tramerei" which wasn't on the program. She forgot to put that back in and even forgot to announce it before she played. But it was definitely a delightful treat to hear such a beautiful piece played with such sensitivity.

Izabela's playing has a wonderful sensitivity to her that is both elegant but with vigor when necessary. Her techniques were near flawless and her tone has a wonderful singing quality. It's brilliant to hear her take the stage on her own from top to finish.

This was the second time...

...I heard her play Vivaldi's "Winter" from "The Four Season". She played it last week at the duo concert and she must have worked on it over the weekend cause it's even better then the last time I heard it. Her tone's even more solid throughout the work and there were even less flaws throughout the piece. Don't get me wrong, she was pretty darn good to begin with. But this performance was definitely on a different league then the last one. It's absolutely fantastic. She had such a wonderful feel for the entire piece today and just sounded like she was totally immersed in the sonic world of Vivaldi. She was able to create both the delicate moments with beautiful singing tones, and flew away with full on vigor virtuosity when appropriate.

She then performed Bach's famous "Air on G String" with just deep passion in a very soulful manner. I almost wouldn't mind if she totally played it without the backing tracks for these pieces. She has such a rich tone in her lower register that I can listen to and enjoy all on its own. I have a special affinity for the G-string on the violin. It really is my favorite string on the instrument and Izabela does not disappoint.

The Szymanowski is a haunting piece and Izabela delivers a chilling performance that is appropriate for the program for this winter season. My one problem is the balance between the piano and the violin. The piano sounds very distant while the violin sounds very close. I would prefer the piano to be more present. It's just a tad bit too far off in comparison that I lose some of the watery effects that it's trying to carry. I much prefer the balance on her performance on Franck then I did on this. But Izabela speaks just so well with her instrument on this piece where her understanding of the message is absolute. This is the kind of music we need to hear more of.

Izabela just speaks so well with her instrument no matter what she plays. Her sounds carry with it tremendous weight and power. And she does them with such passion that even when she's by herself with no accompaniment we wouldn’t have missed them. She moves from era to era, style to style with ease and grace. She delivers a fantastic performance of both classics and lesser-known works. She offers a wonderful contrast from Young's playing that is definitely worth listening to.

By the way, here's her entire program.

"Tramerei" from "Kinderscenen"........R. Schumann
"Winter" from "The Four Seasons"....................... Antonioa Vivaldi
"Air on G String".......J.S. Bach
"Arethusa Spring" for violin & piano.............. Karol Szymanowski
"Polish Capriccio" for solo violin,
"Oberek"................................................................ Grazyna Bacewicz
"Polonaise Brillante" in A Major ......................Henryk Wieniawski
"Sonata" for violin and piano .....................................Cesar Franck

Live Music Review: Satin Galli @ Golden Horn

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Satin Galli
Golden Horn

Time for another review.

Satin Galli was advertised as (and I quote):

• "Satin Galli's name says it all! His voice is smooth as satin! If you're looking for great vocals and style, you've found the right guy! Satin has sung must of his life, and grew up in a very musical family. 'Everything involved music growing up' Satin says. Talent comes from deep within him"

I know puffery is a big part of marketing and used to hype up a lot of people. But with puffery comes judgment. My take is the more you puff up something, the higher you increase someone's expectation. When my expectations are up, I become more critical about the person and the music. If you tell me it's just a fun party with no standards, well I come in expecting that. If it's more then that then I'm even more delighted. But if you tell me someone has a voice as smooth as satin, yes I know it's a play on his name, I am literally expecting that.

So was Satin's voice as smooth as satin? No. Usually I put this criticism on the venue for hyping up someone to get attention. But not this one, this was in Satin's profile. On top of that, he writes:

• "If you're looking for great vocals and style, you've found the right guy! Satins name says it all."

There are minor issues in his singing throughout the concert. There are the occasional pitch intonation problems. There are passages that sound like a bland karaoke singing at a local pub. But, there is some nice stuff here and there and his voice does have a good quality to it. It's just not fully polished.

His voice isn't bad, but it is not what I would consider smooth as satin, great vocals and style. A much more accurate description would be Satin’s is a good singer who enjoys sharing his oldies and some contemporaries with his audience. Once in a while he may even be as smooth as Satin, if that’s possible.

Satin sings a lot of oldies...

...which were nice to enjoy. He does do some contemporary rocks too but they are not as good as his oldies. I can tell he does enjoy all these songs and love singing them. And before you all think I hate Satin, I don't. I just don't think he's correct in his advertisement of his own abilities. He is really on par with a good local bar singer outside of a major US metropolitan area.

It is very obvious that his voice definitely needs some polishing to create a real sound that would be record worthy. To me that is what the words great vocals and style means. If you are great, then you are record worthy. You may not have any intention to record anything and you don't have to. But that's what great is, at least to me. Satin is not record worthy, at least not what I heard live at Golden Horn live. Even his Myspace stuff isn't what I would consider great vocals and full of style, though there are some good moments in some of the recordings like "Landing in London."

I have been a bit harsher on Satin because of his description of himself. I do think if he didn't advertise himself as that I would be much less judgmental about his music. He is a good singer. He has a good voice. He is pretty on pitch most of the time. He struggles at the higher register. He’s really a Baritone. He does have a descent quality in his voice that those couple of moments of goodness sounds pretty nice and enjoyable. I would encourage Satin to record every live session of his and then listen to them all from top to bottom. That's the best way to learn and since he has a musical family, maybe have them sit down and give them an honest weigh in. But I know how often that doesn't work since family tends to want to support you then to be honest.

As for style, I think Satin is trying to nail down his style and his voice. I don't think he has it yet. It's one thing to sing your favorite songs really well. That's the beginning. But until you can turn even song that aren't your favorites and make them your own like you own them, and until we can say that is definitely a Satin Galli performance because of how you sing it, you don't have style yet. Style is very hard to develop, especially for singers. We have a huge tendency to imitate when we sing but that will only get you maybe to a hotel lounge singer level. There are a couple of people I have heard in Second Life so far that actually have a style of their own. They turn all the songs (covers and originals) they sing into their own versions. We may not always agree or like them, but that is real style.

I did get a chance to chat with Jeanaette Janus who is in charge of the venue at Golden Horn. I think she's an absolutely wonderful person to talk to and very intelligent. Given the fact that I had been rather critical about some of the performers at her venue that she is still talking to me, I have to give her major credit. The conversations are probably something for a From the Editor's Desk column, but the conclusion I got is that we are all playing a part here in Second Life live music. She is supporting it in her own way while I see it my way and does it my own. To me it's always a pull between all the different sides that makes a scene. If it's all one sided, all happy and bubbly, it doesn't work. If it's all critical and judgmental, it doesn't work. We need both and everything in between.

There have been some real streaming issues lately in Second Life. I few people I know have been struggling with things like that. But they are out of the control of the artist so it's just something we all have to put up with. I am still having issues with my own stream on my Mac and have to use my PC to log on today to play the streams to review. That's Second Life.

I would say if you like to hear some oldies in a decently performed manner, Satin is the right guy for you. But don't go in expecting awesomeness and something that's just great. The vocals are good but not flawless. The style is correct but not unique. But you may occasionally hear something that may be close to being as smooth as silk. But the over all quality of the entire concert is not smooth as silk.

Live Music Review: Noma Falta @ The Original Winterland

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Noma Falta
The Original Winterland

Finally my stream decided to work again, all on its own. I didn't do anything to fix it, no one did. I am just counting my blessings that it's working and I can continue to review.

Of course it wouldn't be an Enniv Zarf day of reviews if I didn't have something to complain about. Today's concert was for UNICEF charity for children, a fantastic thing to support. My only complain was actually the teleport point. What in the world is up with these teleport points at ridiculously far off places? As if Second Life lag isn't bad enough with a ton of people at a concert, some venue owners decided they want you to first get lost and not know where the concert is after teleporting in, then when you do find it you have to lag through the walkway to get to the actual concert. Please set teleport points right in the middle of the concert area or at least somewhere close enough that I can see it without having to look at a map.

But that aside I am very glad to have stopped by Noma Falta's concert. She has one great voice and she knows how to work it too. She's a blues singer who also venture into soulful rock, which leads me to think do blues singer hold themselves to higher standards then pop and alternative rock singers. No matter Noma really has a fantastic rich voice and puts on an awesome show!

Her voice has great...

...range that is solid from the lowest of her register to the very top falsettos. On top of that her chops on her electric guitar is just electrifying. There is a lot of power coming through the stream and just lights up my speakers.

The best parts I think of her set are the wonderful songs she sings with only her bass. They feel like the equivalent of an unplugged version by most other singers who does it with a guitar. I think they are just sweet to listen to. It’s great to just hear her voice carry the entire song which she has no problem doing. In these songs, she was totally exposed but still carried through strong. She doesn't hide her voice and she doesn't need to. She did have a headache today and was having some issues juggling some stuff, which contributed to some shakiness at rare moments that are barely detectable. I probably wouldn’t have paid attention to them if she didn't point out her nerves kicking in. She did stop midway one song, but that is not an issue to me at all. We all have those days.

Her other numbers are also very well mixed and balanced never to cover her wonderful voice, which is definitely her selling point. Having this wonderful complete sound and varying it back and forth between this and the slimmed down electric bass versions really adds to the diversity that helps keep things fresh throughout.

She also has a good diverse selection of songs to begin with that covers a few good sub-categories of blues. And no matter which style she does, she still brings her gifts to the table and owns them all.

I do want to get to know more about her original music. I usually have a hard time telling which are the originals at a concert since without them explicitly telling me it’s an original, it could be an obscure cover. So whenever doing a concert that mixes in both, make sure to let your audience know what’s what.

Another worthy note that I absolutely think is a thing we have to get more into in Second Life is to sing each other’s original songs. We are a community here so why not? Noma presented a song by a friend of hers near the beginning of the concert. It was a good song too and her voice worked very well with it, carrying the song into my living room. I can think of a few other songwriters in Second Life whose songs I would like to hear someone else singing.

Noma's music has a wonderful old school vibe that I can certainly get used to hearing. Her voice along with her instrumentals is just both rock solid. She claimed to have a headache, but if this is her off day I sure can't wait to hear her on an on day. So check her out any day of the week and you’ll all have a great time with some great music.

Music Review: The Schumann Duo @ Amadora Recital Hall

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Michael Schaf
Originally from Classical Music in Second Life
The Schumann Duo
Amadora Recital Hall

[NOTES FROM ENNIV ZARF: This review is written by Michael Schaf who is a choral conductor living in the United States. More info about him coming soon.]

Tonight, I had the pleasure of hearing the Schumann Duo playing their benefit concert for Toys for Tots.

The concert featured a series of pieces for a variety of instruments accompanied by piano, including the oboe, the English horn, the bass oboe, and not the least of which was the saw. Yes, the saw! The duo made some clever choices, presenting a number of pieces with the saw as the feature instrument, being played with a string bow to produce some interesting undulations.

I have to salute this double-reed player's skills. His accompanist noted that he played for many years as first-chair oboe for the L.A. Orchestra, no small feat to accomplish. His mastery of the instruments was amazing. Lovely control of dynamic, articulation, and artistry. In particular, I was touched by the performance of Edward Elgar's "Salut d'amour" on the English horn. The sensitivity given the piece by the duo drew me in a way I did not expect through a digital universe. I guess it goes to show that music can be beautiful through any medium if handled well. Thank you so much!

The saw on the other hand...

...ha ha ha ha. I find myself unable to embrace it. The technique of the player is certainly not to be questioned. He knew what he was doing, but I suppose the novelty of the instrument didn't win me over. It was cute to play "Hark! The herald angels sing!" on the saw and make everyone smile, but I wouldn't expect John Williams to add a part for it in any of his coming movie scores.

Another thing that perplexed me was the way in which the literature was presented. Most of the pieces were very short, less than 2 minutes in length, with just a few going longer. I admit I'm not a fan of lots of talking in a classical recital, where this recital had 1.5 minutes of music followed by 2 minutes of talking, making for a somewhat choppy experience. The duo played a lovely arrangement of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" for bass oboe and piano that I thoroughly enjoyed hearing, but it felt like barely an introduction to so much more. I was sad that it ended so soon. Let's hear the Milhaud Sonatina next time so we can revel in your gorgeous sounds, whaddaya say?

In short, the Schumann Duo are an excellent pair of musicians and a welcome addition to my second life. In spite of a few minor differences in opinion, I look forward to hearing them again.

Live Music Review: Jaggpro McCann @ Dolphin's Dream

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Jaggpro McCann
Dolphin's Dream
4 stars out of 5 stars

I was at a different venue right before tping in. I wanted to review that one but ended up leaving because it was totally not ready. And it also gave teleport passes so far away from the actual location confusing everyone who's going. And when I get there instead giving me another LM I get a hud to dig through along with a ton of other things to dig through as if my inventory isn't already a shamble. I just wanted to tp in and enjoy a concert. But I finally find the location and they weren't ready. If you are not ready, don't send out the IM. It's ok to send out the notice ahead of time because you didn't know. But when I get an IM saying now, I expect now, not ten minutes later. Well that's my rant for the day.

So I end up at Jaggpro McCann already with a rocky start for the day ready to just review my heart out. Well to my pleasant surprise, Jaggpro is pretty darn good. Jaggpro or just Jagg stands for just a good guy, and he's a pretty darn good guy on the stage. He's a real live musician named Rob Fisher who is a singer and songwriter who also plays a pretty mean guitar. He plays a mix of acoustic rock, folk and blues as a part of his usual set streaming from Australia.

He does cover in his live performance as with most artists but he's got a solid voice for that so it's alright. I was trying to locate some of his originals online a this myspace and other websites, though I found a demo set I couldn't get it to work. I will just have to wait for him to sing an original here live before getting some thoughts on that, hopefully.

Jaggpro has definitely an older voice...

and the aged quality really helps bring out the feeling of folksiness and blueness of the his music. Even though he's in Australia, and his slight accent slightly seeps through even when he sings, it is still rather charming to listen to. Though I do think for my own personal taste, it's a little too rockish at times the way he sings some songs that doesn't reallyl need that much rock I think. I felt this mostly because he has a good folks voice naturally from hearing him talk and sing some of the lighter sections. I just felt he is slightly, very slightly for my taste, a little too rock and roll at times.

But no matter, he's still a fantastic singer and adds to the Second Life Music scene and is someone that can be enjoyed for good singer and music. I really would like to hear his originals though. I always get lost with what's an original when they set so many covers. And it is here I want to say to all artists, hype up your originals when you do sing them in your cover set. Get people to fall for your originals. Cause chances are they are not going to fall in love with your rendition of U2 or John Meyer or Pink Floyd. So when you do play an original, make sure your audience knows exactly that it's an original of yours. Keep playing it and get them to love it. Marketing 101, put it in front of your customer as many times as possible! You know what, I'm going to write up an article about this here right after this review!

Well Jaggpro does really do his set very well, covering a good variety of songs. But still I am definitely going more and more into the original music mode. I was actually talking to another musician while at the concert about this too. To me it should be about original music first, new music first. That's how art lives, it's through creation. So bring out those new works and let everyone know. Then cover songs on the occasion because you really love those songs and want to share them, not because doing those will automatically draw a bigger crowd. So Jaggpro, show us what your original music is and what you are all about. Because if you don't, I will say you have a good voice, but not good enough for me to be in awe without original music to back you up.

Remember when you teacher said to you (well if you've ever had a lesson) that you need to just trust your abilities and just play. Well the same goes for original music. Trust that they will speak to your audience. You will find yours. I am finding my audience for my original music and they love me for what I do. I know I can automatically draw a much bigger crowd whenever I play classic repertoire on the piano or start singing cover tunes all the time. But what's the real point of that? All that eventually amounts to is just basically a fun karaoke session with some friends. I don't have an American Idol singing voice, but I can sing well. I know what my strengths and weaknesses are, do you? Trust yourself, trust your music and play!

Live Music Review: Djai Skjellerup @ SL Globe Theatre

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Djai Skjellerup
SL Globe Theatre
4.5 stars out of 5 stars

I have been the voice director of the SL Shakespeare Company for this past year directing all the voice performances of all the Shakespeare productions. But right now the company is having a bit of financial trouble mainly because it's trying to sustain a four sim corners venue to provide for the maximum amount of people to attend the events. A some shows we had near 200 people at all the different sims.

So Music Not Politics decided to support SLSC by throwing a series of concert this weekend. I actually didn't even know what has been going on in terms of fundraising until I got the notice myself and decided I may as well write up reviews there.

A little about SLSC. SL Shakespeare Compnany is a theatre company that has been producing full productions with sets and costumes and everything else to go along with it. They have a four sims set-up so to relief the amount of lag from so many people and sets and costumes. It is a very expensive endeavor. It's also great to see the arts supporting each other here in Second Life. We've seen a lot of fundrasier marathons for real life charities and issues, but it's nice to support something that is totally exclusive to Second Life. So if you are interested, do stop by the Globe Theatre which is a great build, detailed in architecture, and donate some Lindens to support their cause.

It's also a wonderful pleasure jump in and find someone who performs all original music at his shows (well almost all, he did end up singing some covers later in the concert). Djai Skjellerup is a singer/songwriter/pianist based in the UK and his music does have a sort of Elton John feel to it, but it's not Elton John. He does write on his website that he likes to write music that's familiar and sounds like things that we heard and he does do that rather well.

I guess I get to actually seriously review original music this time...

...instead of talking about how good or bad someone sings. Well I have to talk at least a little about that, but I'll do that later. The emphasis on this one is definitely more on the originality of the performance.

It's tough for sure to sell yourself off as an original music performer and it's very hard to hold an entire concert of your own music. But it does help that Djai's music is very familiar. But it's because it's so familiar that I am not sure what we can really do with it. It really has too much of an Elton John feel all the way from top to bottom. His singing style also reminisce of Elton John along with the piano accompaniment. I just can't get the image of Elton John sitting at the piano singing Candle in the Wind when I hear Djai. The more I hear Djai, the more I think Elton John wannabe. But I do think it's because he likes that kind of music and so he writes in that style and feel. Which is fine, derivative art is still art. In the end we all tend to emulate those who we admire and love. [UPDATE: I wanted to clarify, this statement was meant as a statement of all of music and all of art that has ever been created. We are all deriving them from something else. All art by nature is derivative unless if you were among the first human beings to walk the planet. But even then art was derived from nature.]

His original songs are good to listen to but unfortunately it's a bit forgettable because I feel like I've heard them all already. But it's great to occasionally come back and listen to him sing them. It reminds me of the days that has gone by. It kind of reminds me of this pseudo Moulin Rouge kind of an image for some odd reason, with Ewan McGregor singing "Your Song." And his vocal technique is about on that level. It's not on the level of Elton John, but if it was an actor singing a part, it would be more then acceptable. Well I really liked Ewan McGregor in Moulin Rouge and how he sang it, so I have nothing against Djai at all. I like it. It's fun.

And Djai's talking over his playing in between him singing really totally gives me that again, Elton John feel. Let's hold hands and save the world together. It's fun though, I think it's perfect for this kind of campaign. It's very smoochy and all emo. I am totally about to pull out my lighter and start waving my arms around and cry, well maybe not cry. But still he does it absolutely well and it's perfect for this kind of campaign. And when he holds these really long notes in his rendition of "First Cut is the Deepest", really I am about to fall out of my chair thinking can it be any more "Heal the world?" He would then tell people to sing along, and yell out lines like "can you hear me?" It's so cheesy and corny that I am just having a ball! It works because he takes it so seriously that I can't help but to just go with it and enjoy the whole process.

He even started a collaborative project where he had 24 musicians record together this Christmas song he wrote. He even commented that he tried very hard to write a song that's not cheesy, if that was possible at all. I am glad he has a great sense of humor and it's this that I find him and his performance just fun and absolutely thoroughly enjoyable. He is going to give out that track free for anyone to download and enjoy and rest assure I will definitely get my hands on that and let you all know what I think about it. You can read about the project here.

Perhaps it's just a British thing, but then I am pretty sure it's a Djai thing. He may not be the best singer and pianist around but he is still very good and is fantastic and fun to listen to. I'm also glad that he does a lot of originals which is something I want to see more in Second Life. He is an act, a good one, that if you are into Elton John type originals, Djai would be the one to go to. If you want to just have a retro afternoon and be all cheesed out, and we all do soemtimes I mean isn't that's why we all go Karaoke or go to Vegas and watch these Liberace shows? Oh I guess I'm the only one. Well I actually don't go to Vegas often so I don't really watch shows there. Nevertheless Djai is an act and I think it's a pretty good one to have fun with especially if this is your type of music.

Live Music Review: Mike00 Carnell @ Italia Vera: Milano Vera

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Mike00 Carnell
Italia Vera: Milano Vera
2.5 stars out of 5 stars

I knew it was only a matter of time that I would actually review a performer at the Italia Vera sims. I have performed quite a few times at these sims and they are just crowded. These sims almost always have near 50 people whenever anyone performs, and sometimes they reach up to 99 in one single sim. That is just pure insanity. So if you have never checked out these lag fest, it's just great to go for even once to see how having 99 people in one sim feels like.

Italia Vera of course is geared towards the European audience so all their concerts are before 2pmSLT. Mike00 Carnell was no exception. He is from Germany, Hamburg to be precise according to his Sixty-One. Even though he pretty much conducted the entire concert in English and sang a few English tunes, he has a pretty thick accent in his singing.

He does a lot of covers, and pretty much sounds like an amateur hobbyist who can sing in tune. But that's about it. There's nothing really special about that since there really are some great original musicians in here as well as a few who does mostly covers who are fantastic. And if you have read the comments to my recent From the Editor's Desk post you will know that my ultimate goal here is to really focus in on original music because unless if you have an American Idol quality singing, there's no chance to really break out in the world of singing without amazing originals. But still I want to finish my first round of reviews around Second Life to survey the entire scene first to give myself a good solid base of posts to refer back to.

With Mike00, he sang some contemporary rock hits along with...

...some holiday tunes. His electric guitar playing is pretty good but nothing fancy. His singing though is really just rather unimpressive. But hey at least he can sing in tune so I will give him that. I know I am getting tougher and tougher on cover artists but that is where I am heading. There's nothing wrong with singing for your friends at your private parties if you are descent and I encourage that. But if you are out in the public view in Second Life, I am here to comment and I encourage everyone to comment. My goal is for the gems to shine, to get the public audience they deserve, and to give them the support they need to hopefully help them a bit in the uber tough and competitive real world of music.

Mike00 really doesn't fit that bill of a great musical artist and he really would be more of someone maybe a suburban midsize office may hire to play at their office party to do a few cover tunes descently in the back while they go about their business. I just hope Second Life doesn't end up being only just that and we move upwards in the great venues. I know the Second Life Art scene is moving in that direction.

So if you are a friend of Mike00, by all means enjoy his music and have fun. Encourage him and party with him. But if you are looking for really good music and very talented musician, Mike00 is someone I can pass over. There really are much better choices in Second Life for music in Second Life. And I also never understood why anyone would want to hear a mediocre performance of a hit single when it's so easy to get the actual song and listen to that. Shouldn't we be exploring new music here with new artists instead of hearing the top hit singles being butchered and ruined by some of the people here? But I know familiarity is safe and comforting, but hey those songs were once new to you too. So why not fall in love with new songs and pieces by Second Life's original artists? Well even if you still want these great covers played, at least go to someone who's actually awesome, and they do in fact exists in Second Life contrary to popular believes.

I know I'm getting really tough on amateur musicians, but again, I am not saying not to play and sing. I am only encouraging that as a community we need to support the ones who are really serious about music and needs all our support so that maybe they can get a little more real life attention and let them share their music not only to us in Second Life, but perhaps to everyone else in Real Life. It's a tough challenge, so let's give them every bit of support we can muster!

Live Music Review: FrankLee Anatra @ Woodstock

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
FrankLee Anatra
Woodstock

4 stars out of 5 stars

Maybe I'm a little biased on this one and even picking this time to do this review. Actually I was going to do it a little earlier today when Frank was playing at Freestar Bay. But I was so distracted dealing with some stuff and writing another article for the site which I'll release in a little bit. That article needs to be proofread and polished before I can publish it.

Well I found that he's playing at Woodstock tonight so I decided to stop by and review this. I wanted to review both FrankLee and also woodstock, but I wasn't going to review FrankLee when he plays at my gallery tomorrow. I will not review anyone's performance at my gallery. That would be too biased.

Now with this website I feel like even who I hire is going to be judged! I actually hired all my musicians this month before I started this website and I would say I was just like any venue owner, did very little research. But I rarely hire anyone anyways and when I do it's usually only because that person does something really different to showcase that, or I needed to refer someone quick so I just rely on my friends recommendations.

I heard FrankLee a long time ago when...

...he first started out in Second Life. I thought he was good but that was about all I thought back then. My friend Delinda Dryssen whom I think I've mentioned before was the one who recommended him to me. So I just went with him. But comparing what I remember back then and now, FrankLee really have grown a lot and sounds pretty darn good today. I am not much less worried tomorrow about him performing at my gallery!

Frank sings both originals and cover songs and is also a musician in real life. But he defintiely sings a lot more covers then original since I don't believe he has that many originals to begin with and I haven't heard them sung live yet. But I could be wrong. It's a little hard to pay attention to every song in detail sometimes. Second Life is way too full of distractions.

What I do like a lot is Franks sweet voice. It has quality of yearning in it that works so well with a lot of the songs he sings. He actually reminds me of a very famous Canto Pop singer's voice, one of the most important and famous. It has a certain vulnerability to it and it's imperfection is very charming.

He also sings the covers that he does in his own way with his guitar strumming along. His voice is also perfect for 1 AM in the morning. Yes I am like reviewing music all around the clock, trying to catch a wide variety of musicians from all over the world. I don't want to end up looking like I only listen to people from the US. Though I think Frank is from the US. Nonetheless I am trying my best to get a good variety of people.

Frank's uptempos I think are the best. They have a great combination of life as well as a electric energy that drives them forward without ever feeling rushed. It's just something relatable, something real and here. The acoustic sound of his with his wonderful voice is a treat to listen to all hour long that's both fun and engagin.

I don't think of Frank's voice as a top 40's type of voice. It has almost a sort of folksiness to it that changes the quality of the rock songs that he sings, but it is this that makes it rather charming and enjoyable. And I think his performances in Second Life the past few months have really solidified his voice and really made him grow as an artist. It's these kinds of growth that I love to see and I want to also do as an artist myself in Second Life. I feel I have grown significantly performing here and I feel I have grown even more just this last week reviewing now over 40 musicians here. It's really an amazing place with just so much going on and I hope to continue here for a long long time. And I hope the few artists who do eventually break out of Second Life into a huge real life career won't forget us back here and will come and visit us in the future.

[UPDATED] Live Music Review: Strummer Vultee @ BarrioBeat Productions

Second Life Live Music Review
Written by Enniv Zarf (RL: Paul Kwo)
Metaverse Music
Strummer Vultee
BarrioBeat Productions SLRUL
4 stars out of 5 stars

I think I'm ending up with a Country day here, two in a row. Mostly actually it's because I haven't had time earlier in the day to review more people and I arrived back on Second Life a little after 10pm so I didn't get a lot of notices this hour. I was playing a concert earlier today, Avant-Garde improv, extremely different and then I was at my brother's birthday dinner. Contrary to popular beliefs, I do have a real life still.

Well I didn't feel like digging through the actual Group Notice windows in the groups. I hate the fact that they are not in reverse Chronological order even when I click it by date. It's kind of a mess there. I hope Second Life fix that soon.

So the only IM that popped up for me was Strummer Vultee. So I really had no other choice but to check him out. I wasn't sure what I was going to expect. The notice says he'll amaze me. It used the words awesome, wonderful and beautiful to describe him and his music. Whenever I see this I always wonder is this really going to be as good as it says. In fact this reminds me of the issue that I was talking with a few musicians in Second Life about, amateur versus professional performance. I'll post a full article specially for that, but basically I came to the conclusion that if you advertise yourself as a professional, meaning if you post on any public group saying you're great in any way shape and form and not call yourself an amateur, then you are projecting yourself as a professional and you better deliver.

Strummer was off to a rocky start in the beginning where his voice was on and off. But for the record he was mostly on, about 95% of the time, and as the concert went on he became more solid and secure. He does have a good voice too that works very well with country music. The shaky bits occasionally came back but perhaps it's because when he sounds great he sounds really great that these awkward places just stuck out like a sore thumb. In the end he is a really good singer that's pretty solid overall and delivers a pretty good performance.

[UPDATE: After reading my own article and I realized I didn't say one critical thing that I started to say. I have an absolute problem with false advertising. Although I think Strummer at least at the performance I heard was good, but he's not amazing. He was only on 95% of the time, meaning notes. He was on pitch not amazing 95% of the time. The post said he'll amaze me, well he didn't amaze me for sure. I wanted to make that clear. Sometimes I forget what I started off with on these first look on the fly reviews. But I do look back and the figure it out from here.]

Strummer's singing does...

...have a very good sound that can sound pretty professional most of the time. But then there are these moments where he just sounds like an average karaoke singer at a local bar. So if he could just find those moments and eradicate them I think he can be pretty unstoppable in his singing. When he is on, he's on. He does sound pretty awesome, something I can definitely hear off the major radio station.[Update: I was informed that he uses a lot of pitch modulating things which actually was somewhere in the back of my mind. But I get distracted a lot while reviewing because people will only IM me when I'm reviewing for some reason. Reflecting on his performance, I don't think he'll be unstoppable if he relies on these pitch modulating stuff to fix his definite intonation issues that were popping up everywhere.]

Unlike Dakota, Strummer is a whole lot more country. And BarrioBeat Production's decor really almost made me feel like I was at some barn yard party of some Texan weekend barbecue. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing, but it fit the bill so I'm not going to complain. Strummer sings though a lot of cover songs, and I'm not sure if he has any original. I hope he does cause I think he can really have some real fun with those. But I could be mistaking, maybe he did sing some and I didn't even realize it since I am no encyclopedia when it comes to country music. Just some here and there.

I think Strummer's strongest suit is his production sound and the balance between his voice and all the instruments. I think he did a fantastic job blending it along with even the backup vocals really created this really great sound that's very well done. [Update: So this is where the whole production modulation thing was in the back of my mind. His voice is produced and in my book, that's a major no/no. Keep in mind this is my first time hearing him and I am human, I don't catch everything. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. I have missed people playing prerecorded MIDI stream before on the first hearing, but catch them on the second concert. That's why second looks are important for me. I am actually in the middle of trying to confirm whether a pianist I reviewed is doing that right now.]

He does also vary his song choices between backing tracks songs [UPDATE: It's not a backing track as I was told. But the overproduced voice is a big no/no on my books. It's like listening to Paris Hilton sing.] along with just guitar accompaniment. And he does play with his voice a lot like what I would expect a country singer to do. When he sang "I got a brand new pair of rose" I think that was the name of the song as I couldn't quite make out the word rose, he really did play with the falsetto range of his voice and it was pretty neat.

One thing I do wonder is that why he doesn't reveal his real life identity. I often wonder why some good musicians would not reveal that. I guess they only care to perform here and they're not about creating a real life fan base to help push forward their music career. Well that's perfectly fine to and I have no problem with that as long as you are good. [UPDATE: I did find out that his real identity is Robert Combs and his website is now updated here too. I was told it was at his group. So I now know I need to dig into people groups too to find out. They better have their names on their groups or I'd be going crazy trying to figure out what's what.]

So I gave him a 4 star instead of a 4.5 mainly because of the rocky start that had me a bit worried. Originally I was going to give him a little lower rating but he really picked himself back up. I think he's a solid singer and a really good country singer so definitely if this is your thing he is someone you should definitely check out. He isn't perfect in my books, but when he's one he's so good I think most of us don't really mind the little bits of flaw. After all we're human and we all make mistakes. I know I do, I just like to point them out. [Update: Don't get me wrong, I don't think Strummer is awful or anything. He's just not amazing at all. And if I see him continue to use those terms to advertise him, you'll be sure to hear from me again and again and again until he stops. He's just have good production values that covers his intonation problems. That's ok if you advertise it as such. It's not ok to call him as the best and greatest voice in Second Life.]