Second Intermission

I had the chance to see a bit of Canadian musical royalty in concert last Friday at the very classy Glasgow Royal Concert Hall where we saw Rufus Wainwright featuring Kate & Anna McGarrigle and Martha Wainwright. The performance was set up so that all four (as well as a bassist and background singer) would perform a few McGarrigle classics and other standards together. Then the McGarrigle’s would do a song, then a few from Martha, and then several from Rufus. Sometimes the artist would perform solo, sometimes one of the family would join them on background vocals or guitar.

I was really impressed by the powerful voice and great songs of Martha, though some of the older folk who were there to see Kate and Anna may have been a bit taken aback by the bluntness of her lyrics. I’ve seen Rufus perform before, but I was still struck by the impact of his voice and his songs. Moreover, the man undoubtably has the charisma. I’m not too familiar with Kate and Anna’s material, but I really enjoyed the folkie quality of it and the way Martha and Rufus added to it with their vocals. It was also great to see the banter between the family, almost as if we were watching them perform in their own living room.

The entire result was a perfect Friday night show, comfortably seated in a concert hall and revelling in the quality of musical performance I was seeing. And the bonus was that we didn’t even have to pay for tickets – Alison works for the Concert Hall and managed to get us all in without the £18.50 cover!

Less enjoyable – the movie Troy which I saw on Saturday night. I’ve always loved The Iliad and Greek mythology in general. With such a big budget and a classic back story to draw from, how did they manage to cock it up so bad? Sure, the fight scenes were impressive, but it all means nothing without a well-told story to back it up. And how bad was Brad Pitt’s acting? With all the pouting during battle and the pensive looks over the sea (look at me - I’m conflicted!), I just couldn’t take him seriously. And don’t get me started on the dialogue. Stick to Homer.