{"id":21009,"date":"2012-07-14T08:42:55","date_gmt":"2012-07-14T13:42:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=21009"},"modified":"2013-02-05T17:32:06","modified_gmt":"2013-02-05T22:32:06","slug":"live-robert-plant-presents-sensational-space-shifters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2012\/live-robert-plant-presents-sensational-space-shifters\/","title":{"rendered":"LIVE! | Robert Plant Presents Sensational Space Shifters"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Alissa Ordabai<\/span>
\n– Senior Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

July 12, 2012 at HMV Forum, London, United Kingdom<\/h3>\n

\"\"Tired of rock, but somewhat superficial in his flirtations with world music is how Robert Plant came through this evening. Add to this his urge to distance himself from the intensity and the drama of the legendary band which made him a rock god, and at the same time his inability to get away from those songs, and you\u2019ll get an idea of the limbo Plant finds himself in these days. <\/p>\n

A possible way out would have been to explore more the ethnic music direction he has been leaning towards for years now, but tonight things didn\u2019t go any further outside of the non-Western paradigm than tranced chants, grooves and riffs, and having Juldeh Camara – a Gambian member of the band – play a few traditional instruments. As soon as the door into traditional Gambian music was beginning to open slightly wider than simply adding an exotic accent to rock, the proceedings would elegantly return to Plant\u2019s habitual comfort zone \u2013 back to familiar (albeit charming) rockabilly crooning, American folk numbers (tastefully performed by Patty Griffin) and songs from the Strange Sensation catalog.<\/p>\n

And when time came for Led Zeppelin numbers, you could instantly sense Plant\u2019s reluctance to go back to the initial impulse which spawned them. This is how \u201cGallows Pole\u201d or \u201cBlack Dog\u201d were tonight turned into a New Age hodgepodge of rock, ambient, and world music entwined to support the complex pose Plant now assumes toward his past. <\/p>\n

With the core of this new project comprised of musicians from Strange Sensation, the band provided a comfortable, safe framework for the star attraction. And so Plant sang with convincing flair, despite the complex equilibrium he was maintaining between different genres and different eras of his career. The shift of emphasis from real emotional punch – which Plant can still occasionally deliver – to nuanced understatement has more to do these days with the change in his inner realities, rather than the change in his vocal ability compared to his younger days. Where before he could kill with one sustained high-pitched note, now it\u2019s all about intonation \u2013 something he has been a master of practically since day one, but which today is his method of choice. It\u2019s just that now the songs he sings are sequences of sumptuous (and deliberately constructed) episodes rather than a spontaneous flow of inspiration. But with inner continuum as complex as Plant\u2019s, winging it on impulse is perhaps not an option anymore. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

One thing this show has proved is that with an artist such as Robert Plant nothing can remain hidden. It was all laid bare \u2013 him having departed emotionally from hard rock, but still searching for a valid alternative. And just the way it\u2019s difficult to describe where he finds himself now artistically, it\u2019s equally difficult to put your finger on who Robert Plant\u2019s fans are these days. There were punters in Zeppelin shirts this evening who came to see the legendary singer of the iconic band. The vast majority in the crowd were over 45, and few looked like world music aficionados or even folk music fans. The most ecstatic reception was given to the Led Zeppelin numbers, so it\u2019s certainly this material which remains the biggest draw. Between the past and the present, between hard rock and world music, it\u2019s a peculiar in-between state Robert Plant is in these days \u2013 unable to forget, unwilling to resurrect, and reluctant to dedicate himself to a completely new genre. <\/p>\n

Line-up:
\nRobert Plant \u2013 vocals, harmonica
\nPatty Griffin \u2013 vocals, guitar
\nJuldeh Camara of JuJu \u2013 ritti (one-stringed African violin), kologo (African banjo), talking drum, vocals.
\nJustin Adams of JuJu, Jah Wobble \u2013 guitar, bendir, vocals
\nJohn Baggott of Massive Attack, Portishead \u2013 keyboards
\nLiam \u201cSkin\u201d Tyson of Cast \u2013 guitar, vocals
\nDave Smith of JuJu, Outhouse Ruhabi \u2013 drums and percussion
\nBilly Fuller of JuJu, Beak \u2013 bass guitar, vocals<\/p>\n

Set List:
\n1. Funny in My Mind (I Believe I\u2019m Fixin\u2019 to Die), a version of Bukka White\u2019s song \u201cFixin\u2019 to Die Blues\u201d
\n2. Tin Pan Valley
\n3. 44 (Howlin\u2019 Wolf song)
\n4. Friends (Led Zeppelin song)
\n5. Spoonful (Howlin\u2019 Wolf song)
\n6. Bron-Y-Aur Stopm (Led Zeppelin song)
\n7. Ohio
\n8. No Bad News (Patty Griffin song)
\n9. Standing (Patty Griffin song)
\n10. Don\u2019t Let Me Die in Florida
\n11. Black Dog (Led Zeppelin song)
\n12. Somebody Knocking
\n13. I\u2019m Your Witchdoctor (John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers song)
\n14. Waide Nayde (JuJu song)
\n15. Who Do You Love \u2013 Whole Lotta Love \u2013 Steal Away \u2013 Bury My Body
\nEncore:
\n1. Another Tribe
\n2. Gallows Pole (Led Zeppelin song)<\/p>\n

Online: www.robertplant.com<\/a>; realworldrecords.com\/artist\/3752\/juju\/<\/a>; www.pattygriffin.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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