by Cortney Harding, N.Y. |
February 04, 2009 1:52 EST
It's been 10 years since Tibet was the hot issue in the rock community, but some stars still carry the torch. One of the biggest forums for this activism is the annual Tibet House benefit in New York, where an eclectic group of artists bands together to salute Tibetan culture.
This year's concert, held last night at Carnegie Hall, started off on an energetic note, with Antibalas raising the sedate crowd to its feet. After playing a song, they were joined by Beninese singer Angelique Kidjo, who wowed with an energetic cover of the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter," before performing one of her own songs, "Emma." Antibalas then exited stage right, while bluesman Keb' Mo' joined Kidjo for one more tune.
Curator Philip Glass then took the stage to introduce his son Zack, who was performing with the Patti Smith Band. The younger Glass played two pleasant, mainstream folk-rock tunes, the furthest thing possible from his father's experimental compositions. He was followed by Vampire Weekend, who played with a string quartet and debuted a new song that sounded even more influenced by Paul Simon's "Graceland" than its previous work, as well as "M79" from its self-titled debut.
At this point, the tone of the show changed, with the elder Glass perforing an original piano composition with the string quartet. The piece was lovely, but felt out-of-place after so much upbeat rock. To add to the discombobulation, the National, who played two excellent new songs, followed Glass.
The pace was then changed again, with two songs by Tibetan guitarist Techung and his band the Lhasa Spirits. Perhaps the only criticism of the otherwise well-done evening was the order of the sets; it might have made more sense to group all the rock bands together.
Patti Smith, a fixture at many Tibet House benefits, took the stage with her daughter Jesse accompanying her on piano. Smith is a groundbreaking performer and musician, but she chose to take this opportunity to read two poems, both of which fell flat with the audience. Keb' Mo' then came out for two more songs, followed by Steve Earle, who played a solo track and a track with the Patti Smith Band.
Smith's band stayed onstage after Earle finished up, and launched into covers of songs by Richie Valens, Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper, who were killed in a plane crash 50 years earlier. Smith then joined her band for two songs, including a cover of the Four Tops "I'll Be There."
The night ended with all the musicians coming onstage to sing "People Have the Power," complete with the requisite applause-grabbing Obama shout-outs. Aside from the sometimes off-kilter ordering of the acts, the whole affair was fantastic, diverse, and infused with meaning.
This year's concert, held last night at Carnegie Hall, started off on an energetic note, with Antibalas raising the sedate crowd to its feet. After playing a song, they were joined by Beninese singer Angelique Kidjo, who wowed with an energetic cover of the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter," before performing one of her own songs, "Emma." Antibalas then exited stage right, while bluesman Keb' Mo' joined Kidjo for one more tune.
Curator Philip Glass then took the stage to introduce his son Zack, who was performing with the Patti Smith Band. The younger Glass played two pleasant, mainstream folk-rock tunes, the furthest thing possible from his father's experimental compositions. He was followed by Vampire Weekend, who played with a string quartet and debuted a new song that sounded even more influenced by Paul Simon's "Graceland" than its previous work, as well as "M79" from its self-titled debut.
At this point, the tone of the show changed, with the elder Glass perforing an original piano composition with the string quartet. The piece was lovely, but felt out-of-place after so much upbeat rock. To add to the discombobulation, the National, who played two excellent new songs, followed Glass.
The pace was then changed again, with two songs by Tibetan guitarist Techung and his band the Lhasa Spirits. Perhaps the only criticism of the otherwise well-done evening was the order of the sets; it might have made more sense to group all the rock bands together.
Patti Smith, a fixture at many Tibet House benefits, took the stage with her daughter Jesse accompanying her on piano. Smith is a groundbreaking performer and musician, but she chose to take this opportunity to read two poems, both of which fell flat with the audience. Keb' Mo' then came out for two more songs, followed by Steve Earle, who played a solo track and a track with the Patti Smith Band.
Smith's band stayed onstage after Earle finished up, and launched into covers of songs by Richie Valens, Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper, who were killed in a plane crash 50 years earlier. Smith then joined her band for two songs, including a cover of the Four Tops "I'll Be There."
The night ended with all the musicians coming onstage to sing "People Have the Power," complete with the requisite applause-grabbing Obama shout-outs. Aside from the sometimes off-kilter ordering of the acts, the whole affair was fantastic, diverse, and infused with meaning.
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