Search - Banco de Gaia :: Live at Glastonbury

A great live set

Joseph Geni | Evanston, Illinois United States | 08/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Everyone knew that Kincajou was a song for dancing, but who knew that the rest of the "Last Train to Lhasa" material would go down so hot at a live show?



This is a solid live release of Banco de Gaia, one of the UK's (and the world's) great electronic pioneers, performing live some time after the Lhasa record came out, so the bulk of the show is from that. Somehow, Toby Marks makes tracks I never would have thought danceable ("White Paint"?!) into driving club beats, although his earlier material goes down more sensationally ("Heliopolis," "Data Inadequate"). As Toby at this stage was performing alone, it is never clear exactly how much he is controlling the myriad and cascading layers of beats, synths and Eastern samples and how much he is relying on playback. "Heliopolis" and "Lhasa" sound almost unaltered from their original studio recordings, save for a few bits of timbral tweaking here and there. But other tracks are clearly more interactive experiences and are completely revamped for the live show. "887," which had to be shortened to avoid some "incriminating sampling," goes down particularly wickedly. Bottom line, it all sounds good live, and even if you have both this disc and "Last Train to Lhasa" you will find them sufficiently different that it will be worth the expense of owning both."

Excellent introduction to the group.

Gregory Wild-Smith | Oakland, California | 05/12/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I had never heard of Banco de Gaia before listening to this album, but it provides a look at one of the better crop of world music mixed with electronic beats style artists.



You can really get a feel for a band on record albums, and this album is full of energy, but mellow enough for a sunny afteroon as well. Its foot-tapping, drum-beat led fun that would make a great addition to any music collection.



Posibly its only fault is that, as a live album, some tracks are a bit overlong and were extended for the crowd. However stick this on a CD player in a park and that detraction soon goes away.



Overall - an excellent album, which perfectly evokes an outdoor vibe. Recomended."

A Fantastic Re-Issue of a Classic Live Performance

Jeevan | San Francisco, CA USA | 02/26/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Banco de Gaia were doing the world-beat/electronica thing well before it became hip, and they were doing it right. This is a re-issue of an album that was released some years back of their performance at Glastonbury, UK that has a lot of the energy and beat of their earlier work."