I am Ashley Elsdon

someone who's doing some things

Month: August 2012

The Manganiyar Seduction by Roysten Abel

Posted by on in Festivals, Music

This was certainly one of the most visually stimulating shows at WOMAD this year. Even if you didn’t enjoy the music (which I did), just the set design on it’s own was really impressive. As you can see, all of the musicians were sitting or sometimes standing in these cubes with lights around them, and as they performed the lights around their box came on. When they weren’t performing their lights went off. There were 40 musicians involved in this performance which lasted about an hour and a half.

Aside from the visual spectacle the music was amazing too and included some really incredible performances. But the thing needed to be seen and heard as a whole really. It was made to be experienced as a package, and so I think it’s difficult to explain or convey just how good it was.

The Arboretum at WOMAD

Posted by on in Festivals, Listening, Music

One thing that I perhaps don’t mention to much about WOMAD is about what a lovely location and environment it is. The Arboretum at WOMAD is a good example of this. It is probably most impressive at night when the installations and displays are lit up and really make the environment come alive.

Though even through the day it’s a lovely place to amble through in between watching great music and finding interesting food. I think I spent  more time there this year than in past years. Perhaps I had to spend more time reflecting this year.

The Correspondents at WOMAD

Posted by on in Festivals, Music

I did really like this band. They were a bit of a revelation and also in some ways a bit of an oddity from a WOMAD perspective. From a live perspective they were both amazing and somewhat pedestrian at the same time. The front man had more energy than you likely to see on most stages, but the chap driving the sound was really just a laptop operator. Not that there’s anything wrong with that at all, but I thought it was an odd contrast.

After WOMAD I looked them up on Spotify and listened to some of their stuff, which was good on the whole, it’s just a shame that there isn’t very much of it available.

4th Doctor: The Sun Makers

Posted by on in TV

Ok, by no means the greatest, but certainly a very credible story for the 4th Doctor, and with some very interesting dimensions to the story. There seems to be elements relating to tax, i.e. a corridor called P45 and the guards being the internal retinue, but also a lot of suggestions that the story was also about the BBC at the time and the bureaucratic nature of the organisation.

Whichever it is, or even if it is both I don’t mind really. It was a good story with some interesting ideas and of course a performance from Blake’s 7’s own Michael Keating which pre-dates his role as Vila.

I enjoyed it anyway.

Taste the World

Posted by on in Events, Festivals, Food

I’d never been to the Taste The World tent at WOMAD properly before, so this was a bit of a new experience for me, and it was really good. To the point where I’d like to get hold of some of the recipes actually. Not that I can find them on the WOMAD site as yet, so I hope they haven’t been taken down already.

I thought it was a great idea to get some of the artists showing their favourite recipes and how to make them, and next time I’m at WOMAD I’ll certainly give it a go again.