Einstein Music Journal

Ray Davies

Saturday, February 09, 2008

Not long ago, the legendary Kinks frontman, Ray Davies, who once sang raucously about wanting to be with his girl all of the day and all of the night (gasp!); who freaked out the status quo and was banned from playing in America, was announced to be playing in New Zealand. The 63-year-old rocker will play Auckland's plush Civic Theatre on Monday 24 March. It will be amazing. A-may-zing. Punters who attested the greatness of John Cale's show here last year will likely concur with the sheer anticipation and giddy excitement – the same excitement that saw fans of the Velvet Underground gush over Cale that'll see fans of The Kinks cry with joy over the Powerman's deft return.

Davies' hugely influential and grossly imitated band from which he sprung this solo career, The Kinks (you oughta know that though), also featured on the soundtrack of Wes Anderson's latest hilarious installment, the engrossing and unconventional road trip comedy, The Darjeeling Limited.

The man of cool himself has also just released his second solo album, the brilliant slowburning Working Man's Café. The politically aware opener 'Vietnam Cowboys' is like a modern day 'Powerman', as is the power-rocker anthem 'Hymn For A New Age'. The cutest little gem 'Morphine Song' has backing vocals that bring to mind Connan and the Mockasins' cutesyness, and shows that only the finest improve with age, and Davies, with his worn and weathered voice that is at once cripplingly powerful and epic, is, in the best possible way, proof that he is still leading the pack.

posted by Sarah Gooding @ 11:20 am