Ricardo Villalobos

TMCM · Post by **TMCM** » Sun Nov 25, 2007 3:02 am

hehe, i just found out, it was a narod niki concert (+ this swing orchestra):

http://www.mnml.nl/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=24828

but the fact, that this guy not even bothered to mention it, renders this article even more stupid!

jackyx · Post by **jackyx** » Sun Nov 25, 2007 11:38 am

way to much hate in this article, but its a funny read

Red Kite · Post by **Red Kite** » Sun Nov 25, 2007 5:50 pm

I think Jens Balzer heavily tries to make a name as the most pretentious dck in German feuilleton. Everytime I read his name next to an article I'd like to virtually punch his nose. He shows that he has absolutely no understanding of what was happening that night, for example the orchestra and Narod Niki didn't go over the same mixer, so Narod Niki couldn't work on the orchesta's sound. Also Ricardo is only part of Narod Niki and not the one who is in control. And Ricardo does play some instruments too, even ones that aren't purely electronic. Jitterbug orchestra solo was really cool. I don't know was that guy was expecting, but they were really fun.

Balzer was right about the acoustics though, they really sucked. The room was way too big and the PA too weak. You only had good sound standing right next to the speakers. The mics for the wind section of the orchestra were pretty bad as well, they were either too loud or you didn't hear them at all, when the musician just moved an inch away from them.

I also think Narod Niki and the Jitterbug orchestra didn't really work well together, and I guess it's the fault of Narod Niki. They completely failed at adjusting to the swing jazz sound, they just played their straight techno set all the way through, leaving it for the jazzers to put some funk into it. That worked good as long as they played together, but Narod Niki solo was pretty dissappointing, especially on that PA. They should played more in the spirit of that night, not just straight techno. Maybe improvising everything isn't that a great idea after all.

Der geile Ami · Post by **Der geile Ami** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 1:38 am

Some facts about the last narod niki performance (i was responsible for the sound, but was not the guy at the foh mixer) -

1. 92db limit. This should clear up any thoughts that the pa was inadequate. It is the same issue bar25 faces.
2. train strike really fucked us on materials arriving in a timely fashion.
3. electrical problem (buzz) during soundcheck. 8 quite experienced people could not get this to go away (hopefully audience did not notice the buzz). Same problem using the monitor mixer in a different venue the same weekend. One would not imagine a midas xl3 would give this kind of grief, but we are still trying to figure out the problem source.

We spent almost 20 hours total in the venue before the guests came in.

The peanut gallery will continue, but people should be aware of some of the underlying circumstances.

I would love ot try the idea again with a smaller band and smaller group of laptop guys in a different space

jorgeds · Post by **jorgeds** » Sun Dec 02, 2007 2:08 am

Red Kite wrote: I also think Narod Niki and the Jitterbug orchestra didn't really work well together, and I guess it's the fault of Narod Niki. They completely failed at adjusting to the swing jazz sound, they just played their straight techno set all the way through, leaving it for the jazzers to put some funk into it.

Agree... but anyway considering they didn't haven't any kind of MIDI sync it's hard for 8 persons to be in sync with a human drummer. I think that the combination failed in the way there were too much sounds and all became messy. The soundscapes were hard to understand.

PS: I wouldn't ever have made a Narod Niki with the 92db restriction

slapshot · Post by **slapshot** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 9:38 pm

something else, this one...

Red Kite · Post by **Red Kite** » Wed Dec 05, 2007 10:17 pm

Der geile Ami wrote:Some facts about the last narod niki performance (i was responsible for the sound, but was not the guy at the foh mixer) -
(...)

Damn, that sucks, Thanks for clearing this. 92db limit on such a big venue is a bad joke.
Did someone record the set btw? Like to listen to it again in my preferred volume! :twisted:

Der geile Ami · Post by **Der geile Ami** » Thu Dec 06, 2007 5:45 am

Red Kite wrote: Damn, that sucks, Thanks for clearing this. 92db limit on such a big venue is a bad joke.
Did someone record the set btw? Like to listen to it again in my preferred volume! :twisted:

the day was a nightmare, but an important step in development.

there is a recording, but due to the buzz, im not sure how usable it is. i dont have a copy and do not know about the recordings future. If anything becomes available for the public, it'll make its way.