COIL LIVE IN NANTES, FRANCE
On Sunday, March 25th, Coil played to about 600 people at the Lieu
Unique in Nantes, France. We sat right in the middle of the room under
the mixing board for the first performance, Charles Hayward. This
incredible drummer surprised everyone when he fell onto the stage in a
big clash and slowly started creeping towards his drums. I had never
heard the Coil and Bill Laswell collaborator before, but his impressive
drumming on backing tapes will remain in my memory.
The audience was then asked to leave briefly after Hayward's performance in order for the stage to be prepared for Coil, allowed to return 30 minutes later. On stage, technicians were setting up the gear and dispensing a row of lights, each one hanging from a long rope coming from the ceilings. A big screen was floating high on the wall behind the stage. Someone brought a white chalice and lit the incense inside it. The incense smelled like the kind used in churches, and it slowly started filling the concert hall. On stage were two Dutch-built Fenix modular systems, an EMS vintage synth, an analogue synth, and a digital Kurzweil keyboard.
Right on schedule, a uniformed four-member incarnation of Coil entered the stage, greeted by an appreciative audience. John Balance was on vocals, Thighpaulsandra on synthesizers, Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson performing 'manipulations', and Ossian Sex/Shop (Simon Norris?) was on keyboards. Balance addressed the crowd with a "bonjour", and immediately the opening mantra on Music to Play in the Dark 2 started: something, something, something, something,... The light accompaniment produced a tranquil visual rhythm.
The video show held the audience's interest, perfectly matching the music for the entire night, despite an alleged disappointment from Coil, due to the lack of a professional beta machine at the venue. The graphics evolved in captivating paths, including the proverbial sloth slide show which premiered in September at the Royal Festival Hall. Balance questioned the audience with: "What kind of animal are you?". Later, he informed us at that he was personally a dog!
The set continued with the same songs reported from the London show, including the much appreciated classics "Titan Arch" and "Blood From the Air." Classical percussionist Tom Edwards briefly joined Coil onstage to play marimba and various other percussive instruments, then slipped away just as quietly as he had entered when he finished.
Balance, Thighpaulsandra and Ossian Sex/Shop kept the audience entertained with their stage movements, by either dancing or walking to the row of lights to make them go on. Thighpaulsandra frequently visited the chalice between songs to re-light the incense. When he wasn't singing, John was either dancing, taking prayer poses, moving his hands around his body, or playing with the lights. I feared he would end up burning himself at some point, as their movements were quite unpredictable. Later in the show, Thighpaulsandra jumped on Balance's back, and the two rolled onto the floor, playfully fighting like puppies, strangely reminiscent of John's earlier self-identification with dogs.
An impressive rendition of "I Am The Green Child" was prefaced by John announcing that he was going to assume another personality. Indeed, his voice became decidedly lower as he adopted the 'Green Child' persona. After this finished, "CONSTANT SHALLOWNESS LEADS TO EVIL" flashed on the screen, noise blared, and the lights intensified, creating new patterns. Coil began flashing us with big strobe lights that were dispersed all around the back of the stage. Balance shouted a couple times that he needed it louder. Phrases pulsated one after the other on the screen, such as "GOD PLEASE FUCK MY MIND FOR GOOD," "PERSISTENCE IS ALL," "RESIST THE THINGS YOU CAN NOT FIGHT," and a looped repetition of "COLOR, SOUND, OBLIVION." Around the end of "Constant Shallowness Leads To Evil", John seemed to be experiencing a lot of agitation, smashing his microphone support to the ground and re-positioning it. At one point, the white chalice was struck and fell, the incense spilled out of it into a pretty line of powder on the stage floor. The chalice rolled towards the front of the stage, precariously approaching the edge when John Balance stopped it with his foot. He stood there for a moment, striking a memorable pose.
As the end was approaching, the bright lights dimmed. I wondered how my vision would readjust to the normal lighting of the room. Waves of applause and shouts burst out. The musicians came to the front of the stage and John took their hands. They briefly saluted us and then quickly vanished, visibly happy.
The audience was then asked to leave briefly after Hayward's performance in order for the stage to be prepared for Coil, allowed to return 30 minutes later. On stage, technicians were setting up the gear and dispensing a row of lights, each one hanging from a long rope coming from the ceilings. A big screen was floating high on the wall behind the stage. Someone brought a white chalice and lit the incense inside it. The incense smelled like the kind used in churches, and it slowly started filling the concert hall. On stage were two Dutch-built Fenix modular systems, an EMS vintage synth, an analogue synth, and a digital Kurzweil keyboard.
Right on schedule, a uniformed four-member incarnation of Coil entered the stage, greeted by an appreciative audience. John Balance was on vocals, Thighpaulsandra on synthesizers, Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson performing 'manipulations', and Ossian Sex/Shop (Simon Norris?) was on keyboards. Balance addressed the crowd with a "bonjour", and immediately the opening mantra on Music to Play in the Dark 2 started: something, something, something, something,... The light accompaniment produced a tranquil visual rhythm.
The video show held the audience's interest, perfectly matching the music for the entire night, despite an alleged disappointment from Coil, due to the lack of a professional beta machine at the venue. The graphics evolved in captivating paths, including the proverbial sloth slide show which premiered in September at the Royal Festival Hall. Balance questioned the audience with: "What kind of animal are you?". Later, he informed us at that he was personally a dog!
The set continued with the same songs reported from the London show, including the much appreciated classics "Titan Arch" and "Blood From the Air." Classical percussionist Tom Edwards briefly joined Coil onstage to play marimba and various other percussive instruments, then slipped away just as quietly as he had entered when he finished.
Balance, Thighpaulsandra and Ossian Sex/Shop kept the audience entertained with their stage movements, by either dancing or walking to the row of lights to make them go on. Thighpaulsandra frequently visited the chalice between songs to re-light the incense. When he wasn't singing, John was either dancing, taking prayer poses, moving his hands around his body, or playing with the lights. I feared he would end up burning himself at some point, as their movements were quite unpredictable. Later in the show, Thighpaulsandra jumped on Balance's back, and the two rolled onto the floor, playfully fighting like puppies, strangely reminiscent of John's earlier self-identification with dogs.
An impressive rendition of "I Am The Green Child" was prefaced by John announcing that he was going to assume another personality. Indeed, his voice became decidedly lower as he adopted the 'Green Child' persona. After this finished, "CONSTANT SHALLOWNESS LEADS TO EVIL" flashed on the screen, noise blared, and the lights intensified, creating new patterns. Coil began flashing us with big strobe lights that were dispersed all around the back of the stage. Balance shouted a couple times that he needed it louder. Phrases pulsated one after the other on the screen, such as "GOD PLEASE FUCK MY MIND FOR GOOD," "PERSISTENCE IS ALL," "RESIST THE THINGS YOU CAN NOT FIGHT," and a looped repetition of "COLOR, SOUND, OBLIVION." Around the end of "Constant Shallowness Leads To Evil", John seemed to be experiencing a lot of agitation, smashing his microphone support to the ground and re-positioning it. At one point, the white chalice was struck and fell, the incense spilled out of it into a pretty line of powder on the stage floor. The chalice rolled towards the front of the stage, precariously approaching the edge when John Balance stopped it with his foot. He stood there for a moment, striking a memorable pose.
As the end was approaching, the bright lights dimmed. I wondered how my vision would readjust to the normal lighting of the room. Waves of applause and shouts burst out. The musicians came to the front of the stage and John took their hands. They briefly saluted us and then quickly vanished, visibly happy.
