Megadeth - Live at Credicard Hall, June 6, 2008

Could have been better.

I have been to 2 other Megadeth concerts, and I must say I was slightly disappointed. Firstly, because the concert was shorter than ever; secondly, because I got the utter feeling Mr. Mustaine was there simply clocking in and clocking out.
It's true that Brazil has finally been accepted into the "tours circuit", but now that there are so many concerts, artists seem to turn on auto-pilot and let go. Maybe the money-spinner is such a kick that they do not care whether the crowd feels their stamina or not, or maybe the series of shows really wears them out. But one thing is sure, I felt my money being wiped off in skim minutes of fun.

Differently from my previous post, NOT everybody loves a quickie, or at least not all the time...

Everybody Loves a Quickie

"Kisses From Brazil" - Brazilian Short Films... an ad from En Route, the newsletter published by Air Canada), and me. There I was, sitting waiting for a student, absentmindedly leafing the magazine, when I see this full page orange ad, "EVERYBODY LOVES A QUICKIE". Hell Yea, EVERYBODY! But with an ad like that no wonder tourists come here thinking it's all about sex. Oh wait, but maybe our lousy cinema did the trick too, hum, at a second guess, I'd say the best way to sell Brazilian cinema is all about quickies.
But I'd be biased if I said that without giving proper credit to the few but good long films that have been made over the last years.

I'm not here to debate the quality of Brazilian films though. It was just so uncanny to be reminded that our advertising industry is sooooo... 1950's. An ad like that would NEVER be published here. Even if it was to sell TOOTHBRUSH! Imagine that, "Three quickies a day, all you need for a healthy life!", or to sell morning cereal, "a quickie in the morning will get you started", or to sell Valium, "pop up a quickie and you'll sleep like a baby".
In the end, eventually everything can be sold under the quickie motto, after all, quickies are usually cheaper and lower-maintenance.

Ozzy Osbourne - Live in Sao Paulo, April 5 2008

I killed my battery, but filmed in high resolution hehe... now THAT was a friggen awesome souvenir!

Korn - Live in Sao Paulo, Aprl 5 2008

I'm not even gonna compare Korn to Ozzy (duh!) but definitely it was kickass compared to BLS's. I did like both, but the energy at the Korn gig was higher, more people singing and more difficult to stand still filming!

Black Label Society - Live in Sao Paulo, April 5 2008

After the free beer outside, which could have been sponsored by Zakk Wylde - or maybe he hurt his hand punching something when he found out Heineken was giving free beer to the crowd outside and he wasn't allowed to go get it hahaha... anyways, BLS gig was short, but really nice. I wished he had played some covers though!

Heineken - Free!

That's the most amazing thing EVER! FREE BEER outside Ozzy's gig!

Do you want a better world?

Indeed, we ALL want a better world, don't we? Don't we dream of green grassy fields, crystal clear rivers and air as pure as the mountain dew?

So download your favorite torrent app today and start doing your part!

Actually, I am happy to see that many bands are making their music available for free downloads, and I think that is the future. Going on tour makes a lot of money, and fans are always willing to not only buy band merchandise but also collect CDs.
Nevertheless it is still free stuff that draws new customers to a product, so in the end, downloads are just a tip of a new type of cash cow.

And oddly enough, just as pollution used to be the motto for development 50 years ago, old views on entertainment business just linger as this century pushes terabytes of shared files around the world.

"sharing is caring"


And remember, "that's what Jesus would do!" - and he was a true anarchist, ain't that true?

Bob Dylan - Via Funchal

I thought that being an opening band to Iron Maiden was a really difficult task, too big shoes to wear indeed, but I was so wrong.
The impossible task was to please me after the concert.
Last night I went to Bob Dylan's concert and for my first frustration there was a giant banner "no cameras allowed" at the entrance. Well, we all know there is always a notice informing that but as we all know there is no way of controlling that anymore, especially because of the 22nd century cutting edge hi-tech phones we all have.
Besides, given the extravagant price of the ticket (VIPs at R$ 900/ US$ 450, for instance) we should not only be allowed to take some pics of the show as well as have dinner with the guy!
So, I go in the line and this utterly unpleasant female security guard orders me to hand in my camera battery which will be returned to me at the end of the concert.
Ah, bummer, I thought. Not to mention how hypocritical, because not only I have a cell with great camera, but EVERYONE inside was taking pix with flash (and that I am totally against, dammit get a good camera which shoots in the dark you poor ppl!)
Anyway, I thought, "well at least I'll have a beer and cool off" - when I find out that there is only one type of beer, which I don't like (not to mention the extortive price)
Right before the beginning of the concert it was announced that the service would be suspended during the show, but obviously it wasn't. A neverending line of waiters and waitresses moving back and forth with trays and buckets of ice and whisky bottles.
The concert? Oh, it was good, Bob's still got the vibe of the American Poet, his voice is a bit crooked from all that cigarettes abuse - and everything else hahaha - but the band rocked. But it would have been much better if all this had happened any other week.

Iron Maiden - Live in Sao Paulo, March 2008

Yea, I was in the middle of the crowd, and the video has lousy quality. But the energy is just absolutely overwhelming. I was astonished from beginning to end, and I'll stop talking because there is nothing to be said to top the feeling of being there, in that moment of time, whatever if meant.
\m/,

up the irons!

Deep Purple - Live at Credicard Hall

What a Sunday! When I least expected I got free tickets to go see Deep Purple play live.
Personally, I wouldn't have bought them, but since they were free...
And for my surprise, although they are old as oak trees, the concert was awesome! Energetic and exciting, indeed... who would tell those grandpas can still rock and roll while so many new bands SUCK badly.
Anyway, besides going free, there is the souvenir :-p

Niver da Fe

Beeeeeer