Air Concert Review

AIR Concert Review by Diana Ciuca

What do an isosceles triangle, parallelogram, two vertical rectangles, a right triangle and a semi-circle add up to? The fantastically abstract name design (that would make your geometry teacher proud) of the French techno-pop band, AIR.

I hopped out of the car concerned that I was late. It was nine-ish. That, to me, meant that half the set was over and I would never be able to capture the full essence of AIR. I was wrong on two counts. Firstly, when I walked in the theater, people were still mingling as if the show were about to start much later. Next, in one song or two, I would be able to capture the full essence of AIR (whether that’s a good thing or not).

Similar to Ratatat and Animal Collective, AIR provides psychedelic visual effects to complement their technologically-infused melodies. Surprisingly, the venue matched this aesthetic quality of the show. This was a chill show. By no means did it require being smushed by crowd surfers or the sweaty guy next to you. Obviously the trend of more experimental technopop bands (Passion Pit, Arctic Monkeys, Band of Horses) migrating to the Jackie Gleason Theater in Miami is a sign of the suitability of the venue. Yet, the venue can only go so far.

Unlike I expected, the music was not the most riveting portion of the show. Undoubtedly, the low bass reverberated through the crowd seats like a mild earthquake, but the rest of the tones were too light to be appreciated without any visual aids such as lighting effects. Nevertheless, the poetry of AIR’s works are not in their lyrics (for instance, LOVE: Love, love, love, love), but rather in their evocative combination of guitar textures with creeping sound effects. The have a quirk for artiness and abstraction, but that sometimes leads to an under-appreciated mystique. Their mixing pretentiousness should not be mistaken for a simplistic noise, yet instead should be characterized as a minimalistic harmony of keyboards and guitars.

The show was short. Too short. I was waiting for the intermission so I could quickly take a restroom break. But, all my waiting was in vain as the show ended around 10:37. Much too soon. Five minutes prior to the end I was futilely expecting a short break, but when my break finally arrived, I was disappointed. At least the duo finished with an energetic triple encore featuring their most popular song Sexy Boy. The audience members stood up, danced and jeered as energy pervade throughout the crowds and seeped into their skins.

If you desire quirky, upbeat music, look further. AIR is the definition of chill. Their laid back music borderlines boring, but can similarly spark a profound interest in the subtleties of harmony.

      

Introducing Jaiko

by Morgan Catanzaro

jaiko

If you were to imagine the major cities of America by a genre of music, I’m fairly sure you would generally see New York City as being a hub for underground music of all genres; Los Angeles as the hang out for the ska and punk rockers; Nashville as, obviously, the country music haven; Atlanta’s infamous hip hop and rap scene; and Miami as, well, a large mixing pot of culturally influenced music. If you want a good pop song with a Latin beat, or maybe a Bob Marley inspired reggae band, Miami is the place to be. Many popular artists like Nelly Furtado, Akon, Sean Kingston, Shakira, and Rihanna thrive in this area because of their cultural backgrounds and music.

Jaiko, an up and coming artist from the Barbados, is a musician I could possibly see becoming quite popular in the Miami area, as well as with the rest of the US. Caribbean beats are infused with a poppy hip-hop beat and laced with catchy lyrics to create something that ultimately reminds me of the early music of Rihanna, along with Sean Kingston, Akon, and even Chris Brown. Although some of the beats and lyrics are somewhat cheesy and almost juvenile in a sense, reminding me of something that would be on the Disney channel or Kids Bop, he does seem to have some redeeming qualities in his debut album entitled “Can I.” Jaiko has a good voice, perfect for the genre of music he’s getting into. And I can tell from many of his songs that he has radio potential, which is extremely important as it is one of the hardest methods of advertising music now a days. I would recommend this album to those who only listen to music on Y100, or love anything on MTV.