This was probably the most amazing thing I have been to in a long time. In a small hall in East Van, you walk in to the dark room to see 3 huge screens with crazy images being projected from the mezzanine and hear the music of 'Hard Rubber', a 15 piece 'mondo-groove' orchestra led by John Korsrud. 3 full drum kits, 1 guitar, 1 bass, 1 keyboard, 1 turntable, 2 hand drum sets, 2 laptops and a 4 piece brass section including a bari sax.
A giant white curtain pulled open slightly hides the orchestra members that are off to the side. 
They are funk, they are jazz, they are rocking, they are coordinated. The song never ends for over 2 hours as John leads the crew through a miriad of grooves. He stands on the stage to the upper left where the band can all keep an eye on the maestro, but he is hidden to most of the crowd by the curtain
. 
Extremely talented drummers play off each other with ease, smiling and laughing as they communicate with beats. John plays the trumpet in between leading the group through the music. Three girls wearing all white come out of the eclectic crowd and close the curtain. The projected images hit their clothes and the white wall created. The band keeps us dancing and the girls bend and twist on the stage, their clothes changing colour. 
Our lady entertainers open the curtain again for us to enjoy the talent that was hidden for a bit, the
n disappear and reappear wearing prom dresses and pig masks. The images change to pre-recorded mini videos of the pig ladies roaming the streets being dramatic. The real life bossy pigs won't take no for an answer and pick people out of the crowd to dance with. Using over the top expressions they kept us engrossed in the whole experience. The music pulsing, the light show engaging and the jesters amusing, it was a show for all the senses. Our piggy friends finished their time and were replaced by a dreadlocked fire-dancing looking girl with 2 hula hoops. 
She twirled in front of the curtain while hippy girls writhed at the front of the dance floor to the complex beats. I was taking pictures throughout the whole night, one of my favourite shots was of this girl who was enjoying the whole thing as much as I was and wanted to watch the band, not so much the curtain hiding them. 
She lay on the corner of the stage and lifted the curtain and watched. Felt like she as peaking behind the curtain to see the Wizard of Oz.
The 3 drum kits, the 2 hand drummers and the D.J. kept playing while the rest of the orchestra came out front to the delight of the mob. 
True rocks stars. The curtain opened again to reveal the beating heart of our show and the crowd went wild. The drummers finished and did their bows, with two of the the 'stars' of the show, Tim Proznick (drum kit) and Myles Bigelow (percussion) getting that extra bit of cheering.
True rocks stars. The curtain opened again to reveal the beating heart of our show and the crowd went wild. The drummers finished and did their bows, with two of the the 'stars' of the show, Tim Proznick (drum kit) and Myles Bigelow (percussion) getting that extra bit of cheering. The D.J., Timothy Wisdom kept up the beats and gave us something to hang on to as the crowd dispersed. Amazing. I highly recommend getting tickets to this next year.
More info:
http://www2.canada.com/vancouversun/features/2010/story.html?id=9175ee3d-2bcb-4f15-b42e-3bc76a8f3443
Me on the stage:
1 comment:
that sounds totally cool! I so want to go with you next year!
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