One 'Medicine Show' you won't want to miss
Written: Feb 25 '07
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Good, tight, performances, interesting to see live
Cons: only 8 tracks? no interviews?
The Bottom Line: While there is room for improvement, especially for the DVD, E=MC2 will earn a place in any BAD fan's DVD collection.
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| flash-hammer's Full Review: Big Audio Dynamite - Live: E=MC2 |
I’m unsure when the final incarnation of Big Audio Dynamite played their last gig, seeing as the band went out in such a low-key fashion, having to put out their final record, Entering A New Ride on the Internet themselves when record label Radioactive, whom the band signed with for more creative freedom, refused to release, with their demise never actually having been officially declared. With this said, it would have been before the year 2000, when I actually started scratching beyond the surface of current bands with regards to my taste in music, and I’m sorry to say I never got to see them live. The thing that made this so especially frustrating was that out of all the bands whose careers I got into posthumously, BAD were quite easily the most intriguing to me with regards to how I tried to imagine them live. I mean, just how would they work? How would they incorporate all the effects and samples that made the records so memorable? When Big Audio Dynamite - Live: E=MC2 was released in early 2007, I naturally snapped it up and anticipated finding out what the band sounded like live.
Now, first of all, something requires clearing up here. BAD, in their original incarnation, which included Clash-collaborator Don Letts, Leo Williams, Greg Roberts and Dan Donovan, split up after the release of 4 very good albums in the space between 1984 and 1989. Jones then recruited fellow guitarist Nick Hawkins, bassist Gary Stonadge and sometime Sigue Sigue Sputnik drummer Chris Kavanagh and dubbed this tighter, more traditionally rock-edged line-up Big Audio Dynamite II. It’s with BADII that Jones achieved the majority of his mainstream success post-Clash, with several of the group’s singles and their one album doing good business, especially Stateside. Live: E=MC2 is actually BADII, something that the sleeve points out, and is pretty hard to miss given the huge ‘BAD II’ banner that the band are backed by. With this said, how Cherry Red Films, the company who put it out, managed to miss this fact for the DVD title I’ll never know, it’s certainly not the only thing wrong with the release, but I’ll get back to that later.
E=MC2 is a recording of a performance and London’s Town & Country Club back in 1990, probably promoting the band’s then current (and only under the BADII name) album The Globe, with one of Jones comments to the crowd supporting this.
On paper, there appears to be a complaint right away with a shockingly short track-listing spanning only 8 tracks, which you’d also normally be aggrieved with from a headlining band. However there are 2 things that make this a bit more acceptable. First of all, if you rip any BAD CD into your computer, you’ll notice that the running times of each of the tracks is often fairly lengthy. Even with there only being 8 songs, the set still lasts 50 minutes, which really isn’t all that bad. The other factor is Jones’ habit of improvising, something that he’s carried on into his follow up band Carbon/Silicon (note: if you ever go to a C/S show, don’t bank on catching the last train) and it’s evident for all to see with this DVD, with the sections of the songs that usually comprise of samples or extensive effects replaced by some enjoyable solos and experimentation from Jones and Hawkins, as well as a guest appearance from the Jungle Brothers on one of the latter tracks, and even a DJ (possibly SSS, Gen X and C/S’s Tony James, who did play a similar role at some point in BAD’s career) to produce some unique music that you won’t hear on record, and if what I’ve read is true, you won’t even have found in exactly the same form in other gigs on the tour. I suppose in some cases, especially for the original BAD songs, which were often keyboard heavy, it’s a necessity, but it adds a level of interest that live DVDs don’t often have, and also clues me in on how bad played…they didn’t just try to play their songs and try to get them to sound like they do on record, they take they play them, and compensate for the lack of studio input with some fresh and interesting work on the things the band certainly can do live.
While this could be taken as a bad thing for some fans, if anything, I prefer it. It shows that the band didn’t just play with electronic effects and earn fans for novelty value, at the heart of their tunes they are all either based around a traditional rock set up, or can easily be adapted to it, and personally I’d rather they played the songs well on guitar than suffered trying to make record-perfect performances onstage.
That isn’t to say the songs are completely devoid of their effects, we get some of the samples from Westerns played either over the PA or via the DJ when the band open with Medicine Show, the Looney Tunes quotes in and an extra one before The Globe and even the cheeky sampling of Joe Strummer for Rush, but the band don’t get bogged down trying to fit in every effect and quote.
A look at the track-list is quite interesting, in that despite the fact they were promoting The Globe, and had such a short set-list, they only play 3 songs from it, the same amount as has been culled from debut album This is Big Audio Dynamite, with one track from the band’s highly underrated third record Tighten Up Vol. 㣼 and a Prince cover. Sophomore record No.10 Upping Street and, most shockingly of all, the band’s highlight Megatop Phoenix are shunned completely. I would have thought they would have littered the set-list with tracks from the current album, not only for promotional purposes, but also because they were songs crafted for that set-up. I mean, they couldn’t miss out hit singles like E=MC2 and Medicine Show, but I was, admittedly pleasantly, surprised at the inclusion of Other 99 over what were then more recent tracks. With a set-list so short, there are obviously going to be songs excluded that I’d have liked to see (most notably Can’t Wait and Sightsee MC!) but then, there’s also no track I’d like to see omitted from the set-list.
So what about the actual performance then? I have to say I’m disappointed. Not in BAD’s performance, more in myself for not having seen them live myself. The band can only have been together in that line-up for a year tops, yet they appear very tight, be it when playing the BADII tracks or reinventing the original BAD’s songs in a more guitar-orientated light, producing a thoroughly enjoyable show. While they aren’t over-flowing with banter with the crowd, Jones does offer interaction between most of the songs, if only just to introduce them or offer a comment on how they still apply, apart from one anecdote about how Prince may not receive his royalties. Short amount of tracks aside, the only real downside, although it could be an upside if you want a laugh, is that it serves as a shocking reminder of how awful early 1990s fashion was. Jones in particular is a walking disaster, appearing to have shown up in his tartan pyjama trousers, his nan’s shirt, complete with a picture of a horse and cart on the front, a leather jacket, black hat and quite easily the worst haircut in music this side of the 1980s.
Arguably the most disappointing thing about the DVD is that in the credits of the show, it lists ‘Interview Footage’, Interview Footage obviously included on a VHS release or if this was broadcast on TV, but shockingly absent from the DVD. I know Cherry Red are a mainly budget company, better known for their CD releases of smaller-scale punk bands, but come on, I think pretty much any fan of the band would rather have seen interview footage, especially given how much BAD have been overshadowed by Jones’ earlier band to the point info on them is nowhere near as easily accessible. I thought one of the major selling points of DVD was the inclusion of Special features like this, and Cherry Red have definitely dropped the ball here.
At the end of the day, retailing for a tenner, E=MC2 is a worthy purchase for fans of the band. I wouldn’t exactly call it essential, but when you consider how little BAD related material is readily available (this DVD actually highlights the fact that it ‘Features Mick Jones from The Clash’ to try garner some interest) I guess for fans of the band, in a sense it is. Personally I’d rather have seen BAD I&II, the VHS compilation of music videos, updated and put out on DVD, but I certainly enjoyed E=MC2 and would recommend it to any BAD fan. It may not be perfect, but it’s a good evening’s entertainment.
Track Listing
1. Medicine Show
2. I Don't Know
3. Other 99
4. E=MC2
5. The Globe
6. Rush
7. The Bottom Line
8. 1999
Recommended:
Yes
Viewing Format: DVD
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up to Age 4
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flash-hammer
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