Ken-ny! Ken-ny! Ken-ny!
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Opeth at the Wiltern was a good time. (See my dilemma about attending here.) It wasn’t an experience that I’d repeat again, but it was entertaining.
The band played two sets. The first was Blackwater Park in its entirety, with no pause even for stage banter. Musically, this did not interest me much. However, the band’s playing was technically astounding. The rhythm section was full of groove and warmth. A strong sound mix helped. Mikael Åkerfeldt hit all his vocal notes, which may be a first for any show I’ve attended.
The second set was selections from each of Opeth’s albums. These songs were heavier and kept my attention more. The crowd was rapturously in love with the band. While cloying, Åkerfeldt’s stage banter was mostly funny. The venue, an old theater, was beautiful, and the atmosphere was positive. I didn’t mind being there.
My night propelled into the transcendent, however, when I saw Kenny G in the crowd. Evidently his son is a metalhead. (See this sighting of Kenny G at a Cynic show, and this photo of him and his son with half of Megadeth.) Upon seeing Kenny G walk by and hang out near the moshpit (who moshes to Opeth???), I blew a few mental fuses. Just seeing him made me feel like I was in an airport at 3am, feeling his sax stylings caress lacerate my soul. I fervently hoped that Kenny G would join Opeth onstage. Alas, it was not to be.
My friend Robert brought his nephew to the show. His nephew, a high school junior, had no idea who Kenny G was. He spent the whole night wondering why I was freaking out about a guy with curly hair.
In case you don’t know who Kenny G is, he is the king of adult contemporary/easy listening/smooth/lite/whatever you want to call it “jazz”. According to Wikipedia, he is the best-selling instrumental musician alive, having sold over 75 million albums. You can experience his magic below in the video for “Sentimental”, from 1992’s Breathless, the best-selling instrumental album of all time.
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At least the show carried some excitement for you. Having attended the show at Terminal 5, I know the band was there and I know I was there, but I’ll be fucked if I saw them on anything other than a crappy TV. They sounded pretty good though.
Opeth? Kenny G? There is a profound metaphor buried in there somewhere that could serve as the moral to this story.
How did I miss Kenny G??? (That is truly bizarre, by the way, Kenny G at Opeth) We were dead center, directly behind the moshers. (Very humorous, Opeth’s moshers – rather unexpected)
The sound was really quite clear, and overall very very good. Not painfully loud like most Chicago venues seem to be. As usual they were technically brilliant in concert. I enjoyed Blackwater Park very much, but the second half was significantly better, as I had not heard most of those heavier songs live before.
One thing that really impressed was the transitions from hard to soft. (second to Åkerfeldt’s vocal performance – really amazing) The first time I saw them (2002 ish?), the abrupt ends to the heavy sections were a bit ragged. It definitely took away from their otherwise clear and precise performance. Each time I’ve seen them they get more accurate and precise, especially in these transitions. They really nailed it this time.
That’s the thing about Opeth. Live, you get something remarkably similar to the album. (Plus some mostly humorous banter and many gracious thank yous) I’m sure this puts some people off. It’s not heavier or faster, but equally accurate – which is what I find so compelling, given the complexity.
You’re right – their fans LOVE them. It was a great atmosphere.
So I wasn’t just imagining things! Kenny G walks the walk (or at least, he plays sax as the soundtrack to his son walking the walk).
On the same subject, I met Kenny G’s former publisher from Universal a few months ago. She said that when he came into the office and she offered him his pick of any of the recent CDs in their warehouse, the only one Kenny G chose was the new Slayer.
I too saw Kenny G. It was so out-of-place that I thought I was clearly mistaken. So probably for the first and last time in my life I googled “Kenny G images” from the pit. Confirmed. The second set was crazy. The tracks were Forest of October, Advent, April Ethreal, the Moor, Wreath, Hope Leaves, Harlequin Forest and Lotus Eater. If you told me beforehand that those were the songs on the second setlist, I would have thought you were full of it. Those first five tracks are so of Opeth’s heavist work. It sounded amazing. Blackwater Park sounded great also – I had really high expectations for the album being played live. My thoughts going in were that the album has a strong beginning, middle and end. Plus, I enjoy Bleak live probably more than any other Opeth tune. My opinion of the album has changed. There were far more slower sections than I remember. If this was my first Opeth gig, I probably would have been disappointed by the Blackwater Park set though their playing was great. Also, 3 hours of Opeth was a bit challenging. I am stunned that they can play their songs, and play them well for such a long time period with only a 10 minute intermission. I bought a sweet commerative black mug! But unfortunately it has the Terminal 5 date instead of the Wiltern.
No idea K.G. did soft porn videos…
Jay – I know that crappy TV. I watched a hardcore festival on it. Strange, to say the least.
Etan – That’s a wild story. I wonder if Kenny G is truly into metal, or if it’s because of his son. Though someone who makes such evil music surely has to be of the dark side…
Damn! I missed Kenny G!
http://titoagogo.livejournal.com/150053.html
Glad you liked it, even when it looks like you enjoyed Kenny G’s appearance the most ^^
As a Saxophonist, I hate the idiot Kenny G. Everyone always asks me if I can play any of his shit. As a classical musician (and a metal fan) I get quite insulted when people think that’s all Saxophone is. Opeth live slays btw. Saw them in Auckland when they came to NZ, and were the best live band i’ve seen, equal with Iced Earth.