Great hi-fi can give you goosebumps. And it relates to an-other source of horripilation: live music, and its record-ings. I’ve also always been a live music junkie—ever since I was a kid.
I was fortunate to have grown up attending the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Cincinnati Pops Orchestra’s “LolliPops” children’s concerts. I’d seen some tepid live acts as a kid (ie, Donny and Marie). But nothing prepared me for my first rock concert. It, um, rocked my world.
It was The Power Station, at a large, covered, outdoor amphitheater. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) opened. I was a giddy 12-year-old. An older teenager, the elder daughter of friends of my parents, escorted me. I was excited.
The heady night air felt sticky and grimy. Fortunately, our seats were back where the music wasn’t excessively loud. Even so, being a sensitive kid, I stuffed some cotton in my ears.
I was a naïve Duran Duran fan. This supergroup side project involving two of that group’s five members (plus Robert Palmer and former Chic drummer Tony Thompson) sounded much different from Duran Duran. This was soon after the release of their first, eponymous studio album (widely known as Power Station 33 1/3) and their only one until the band’s 1996 reunion.
Why am I rambling about a distant concert memory? Because it was a formative experience, hearing how musicians transform a familiar album when they play it live, and because, when I was reviewing the Chario Aviator Amelia loudspeaker, I kept wanting to play live recordings. I wasn’t exactly sure why. Somehow, these speakers seemed to bring naturalism, humanity, and a sense of aliveness—or liveness—to that music.
Esta historia es de la edición June 2022 de Stereophile.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición June 2022 de Stereophile.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
AURAL ROBERT
Another \"outlaw\" country artist
Nina Simone: Wild Is the Wind
By all accounts, Eunice Kathleen Waymon, aka Nina Simone, who passed in 2003, was a troubled person and a brilliant artist. Why she was not more acclaimed during her lifetime is a question several recent film projects have tried to answer. Did her fierce stand on civil rights lose her fans?
Vintage hi-fi, old and new
Many audiophiles and serious music lovers are passionate about vintage. Vintage has become a popular \"way in\" to the hobby, especially popular among younger folks.
Tekton Moab Be
LOUDSPEAKER
ARCAM Radia A25
INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER
Wharfedale Heritage Series 90th Anniversary Dovedale
LOUDSPEAKER
Technics Grand Class SL-1200/1210GR2
RECORD PLAYER
Thrax Audio Siren
Based in Bulgaria, European audio company Thrax has been active since 2009.
EMM Labs MTRS
STEREO POWER AMPLIFIER
SPIN DOCTOR
Alternative phono cartridge technologies and the DS Audio DS-W3 optical cartridge system