10 years after!

It was in 2001 that I visited Montreal for the very first time. By that time, I was single, professionally successful and somewhat famous. Famous among a bunch on guys who really appreciated the checkbook from the firm I used to work for. This was a reason enough to provide me access to the trendiest clubs in town. My life by that time was something like this:

- Mondays and Tuesdays working from 7AM to 6PM. Going back home after the eternal traffic or visit the Vampire (same traffic jam applied).

- Wednesdays: Gym by 8am; office from 10 to 5PM. Bars until midnight.

- Thursdays, Fridays: Gym by 10am; office from 1pm to 5pm. Bars and clubs until closing time.

- Saturdays (on and off): Bars, clubs and events until closing time.

- Sundays: Sleeping almost the full day. Movies by night with the Vampire.

You can imagine, a life of fun yeah? Trying to escape on holidays, I randomly chose the destination to go see U2’s Elevation Tour. Bought the ticket on line, booked the flight, no hotels reserved (to live the backpacking experience once again), no plans but openness up front. Final destination: Montreal, Canada!

Saturday afternoon, landed in Dorval, took the bus up to Lionel-Groulx station to take the subway up to Place d’Armes. Bought a city map and I was ready to hit the city. Once in Old Montreal, I perfectly remember how silent was/is the neighborhood on weekends and how noisy was my luggage in. Alternative Youth Hostel, local beer, good stuff already spotted and a series of bars and clubs to check out.

May 28^th 2001, Centre Molson: U2 Elevation Tour. Amazing night out! Unforgettable experience! Magnificent!

Days after, I was flying back home via Miami with a life decision made. For those who know me better than others, you certainly know how the episode evolved. For the others, just figure out how life is in a rollercoaster after having put life of fun in two luggages and start from zero! GROUND ZERO!

So far, the rollercoaster has brought me to have Lionel-Giroux station as the closest to home; Old Montreal as the work area; less bars and clubs but a family package; almost, almost the same firm; no idea of those who made me think I was famous; no gym but a belly and finally more WITH than WITHOUT YOU!

U2 will be performing on July 8^th and 9^th 2011 in Montreal’s Hippodrome and I will ask myself what the fuck brought me to the North Pole!

First Quarter 2010

In times where there is no final destination and we are all part of extended & infinite networks, it seems that things cannot never go normal again. I remember exactly the moment when I was writing my last post and thinking about how my grandmother fed this music dementia. Now she is no longer with us and I miss her a lot!

But a quarter has just passed and now again, it seems that I will be facing this benji-lifestyle that takes me up and down at the fastest pace. Yes, I know! It is all my fault and I assume its risks!!!

This first quarter has been so unbalanced, contradictory, ironic and challenging. Now that it just passed, I realize how fortunate I have been in having access to the music I love. Now more than ever, I have a free pass to the dementia. Music dementia!!!

Conexion Montreal, Experiencia sonica de sur a norte! is a personal project in which Juan Pablo Jaimes and me decided to let us go in a production of a podcast. It is all about passion for music in a global community. It is all about letting people know more about Montreal, this city that welcomed us with open arms. This city that sometimes we believe that is closed in tiny tribes but at the same time opens doors for creation, knowledge transfer and happiness! This city that sometimes I think I will never leave, even if sometimes I would like to.

We have already produced 10 episodes and shared music with many old and new friends. We have encountered and interviewed open and passioned people. We will certainly welcome all those self-descripted "music demented" and invite them to share theirs experiences!

Even now that I think that my time shortens, my personal commitment is to continue connecting Montreal with "music demented" individuals all around the world.

If you are Spanish speaker and love alternative music, please come a listen to our podcast, share your thoughts, your music. Share your dementia! (if you are French or English speaker, please be sure that we dream to have the opportunity to connect with you as well....qui sait, un jour on aura l'opportunité de faire traduire tout ça!)

As Tricky said: Be borderless!

www.conexionmontreal.com

2009

Desde hace ya algún tiempo tengo la mala costumbre de hacer el balance del año en función de los shows que pude ver, de los discos que compré (y disfruté) y de los grandes eventos en la música.

Este año, tal vez me sea no necesariamente más difícil pero si comprometedor hacerlo en función de la música. Si comienzo por nombrar el nacimiento de mi adorable Valentina tal vez no haya razón por la cual escribir de otra cosa, sin embargo, siendo este un blog de música, tal vez deba resumir “la hora estelar de mi vida” en las 264 veces que hice sonar “Nuit Blanche” de Vive la fête para dormir a mi princesa.

Si tomo en cuenta ese comienzo tal vez deba darle al 2009 los créditos del año más feliz de mi vida y seguramente lo ha sido. Ahora bien, como mi mala costumbre aun persiste, debo contar lo siguiente:

1) Tricky en La Tulipe el 3 de abril fue un show personal y tan oscuro como la piel del mismo personaje.
2) Depeche Mode en el Centre Bell el 25 de julio fue simplemente monumental, tal vez uno de los mejores que haya visto alguna vez. Sin duda…
3) AC-DC en el Estadio Olímpico el 8 de agosto fue cacofonía pura al mejor estilo demencial de cuando tenía 8
4) Metallica en el Centre Bell el 19 de septiembre fue una buena celebración de mis 36 gracias a un regalo inesperado de amigos dementes
5) Peaches, como Paris…dos veces al año fue suficiente para decir que es el mejor performance en vivo de una artista emergente…Godet lo confirmo en Le Bataclan en Paris hace un par de días. A rising star , quoi!

El año no termina aun y entre buenas y malas noticias siempre hay un momento en el cual debo escudarme en buena música. Hoy no sé si hacerlo en el disco de Beast para darme una razón de ir al show este martes, no sé si Corneille tenga letras que me ayuden a vivir el duelo en un domingo de soledad, frio y tristeza, no sé si sea entonces Invisible Violence de We are Wolves para poder llamar a los vecinos y preguntarles que tal les fue. Lo cierto es que cuando se está lejos recibir llamadas no siempre es agradable.

Al tiempo que mi siempre consentidora abuela, la cual consintió incluso esta demencia (Por favor leer mi primer post), se ha ido y que el balance del año hoy parece gélido como el Yukón, lo único que puedo decir es que me resulta siempre más fácil hablar de música que de la vida misma y su famosa ley.

Todavía quedan 27 días y la verdad que preferiría que fueran bien “normales” pues ya no me interesan las sorpresas (al menos por lo que queda del 2009)!

NYC

It has been a while since the last time I visited NYC. The last time it was actually in 2002 where Miss Kittin and The Hacker were still beating every single indie bar with electro-pop. From that visit I remember some celebrities named Fern&Gab asking a doorman if the bar was closed and then exclaimed: " It's closed!!!".

We went to vOID and then to some afterhour to dance with Tenaglia. We visited the Beauty Bar, Barmacy (where an angel rescued us from the dark), LAI concert somewhere in SoHo and ate spicy thai food in TriBeCa. The day after we went for dinner at Pastis and saw the Trocadero ballet of Montecarlo in Chelsea. What a week!!! In a previous visit I remember CBGB and Twilo, the same week. Ok. The same week!!! In fact, in NYC everything can happen in a week or even in a day!

Today, I heard the latest single of LCD Soundsystem and reading one of their latest Twitter feeds I realized that I need to go back to New York: "if you're in nyc, come down to brooklyn bowl tonite for dfa cmj thing... holy ghost, shit robot, still going and us dj, yacht live! yikes!!"

If I go back to NYC one of these days, I will certainly try to maximize the experience as I did before. I would like to go to FAO Schwarz with Valentina but I will pursue a gig of James Murphy with any doubt. When I went to his disco party here in Montreal I felt in Brooklyn 1979.

I told him: "I've never heard disco like this"

He replied: "Thanks, I know. It is the New Yorker Style"

Then, my satisfaction quote is: "I was there!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ON1eRJtoOrg

I just cannot explain!

Just can't!

Perdido

Ayer deambulé en varias tiendas de discos. Buscaba algo que no encontré. Los estantes estan llenos de musica que ya tengo o que simplemente no quiero tener. Encontre nombres tan remotos para mi como The Go Team! en el mismo estante del tan anunciado nuevo disco de The Gossip "Music for men". Tambien encontre estantes llenos con la misma caratula multiplicada por centellos de lentejuela de las medias de Michael Jackson, del guante, de la historia de la nariz que perdio y de los ojos a la Liz Taylor que nunca tuvo. Estantes llenos.

Fue sorprendente tambien ver que la seccion de musica urbana de Archambault perdio casi una pared completa para darle paso a accesorios de Wii y Nintendo DS. Imagino que se hizo un analisis de rentabilidad por seccion para determinar que la musica solo merece un espacio mas pequegno en la tienda de discos. Total, ya no es tan importante.

Senti lo mismo que senti cuando DGeral me dijo exactamente lo siguiente (a proposito de la falta de nueva musica en Esperanto a causa del control de cambio): "No pana, ya no llega nada y no vale la pena traer cosas nuevas. O la gente la baja y la quema o simplemente a Carlos no le conviene porque no es rentable. Yo me voy de aqui...lo que viene es puro reggeton". DGeral no solo se fue de Esperanto, se fue del pais y con toda razon. Ahora yo me pregunto, y yo a donde me voy?

http://www.gossipyouth.com/ca/home

http://www.myspace.com/gtheg

http://www.archambault.ca/archambault-ACH-fr-ct

Nota: Dado el teclado a traves del cual escribo ninguna acentuacion fue respetada.

30 Years of going back in black!

Time flies! As I turned 36, my daughter turned six months. I realized that time passed in a sec and I have not blogged since May. It has been very difficult to find a moment to document all experiences and feelings lived behind a record spinning around and around. For me, music have been the mean to live sadness and happiness, highs and lows, good memories and bad memories or willingness and static states. Regardless the way I feel, music always represents freedom.

It is already August 2009 and I did not seize when I accomplished some of the milestones in my life. It is like I have jumped in an eternal "benji" and I am in a constant up and down at the fastest pace. I have promised myself to seize and enjoy the moment, take the time to write about the music I love (or hate) and live peacefully. But, time flies and I need more of it to write about, but not to enjoy music.

Tonight, I am going to be among 53 000 people at the Montreal Olympic Stadium. AC-DC will hit Montreal and I will remember how this dementia started back in late 70s. This dementia which represents freedom and joy or the purest enlightment. It has been about 30 years of riff and raffs, drums and lights, screams and claps. It has been about 30 years of passion and endless expenses. It has been a while, a short while.

AC-DC's show could be one of the most expected for me. Tonight, I will feel like I am 8 again, but going back home I will be promptly faced with my current 36!


So, I definetly will live the moment!


p.d: Depeche Mode TOTU's show was one of my best show ever. But unfourtunately, I was WRONG!