Couldn't have asked for better weekend weather to kick off the Paris Jazz Fest out in the Parc Florale...and yet I spent part of Sunday afternoon inside, to hear EOL trio play at the Dans Le Noir restaurant near the Pompidou Center.
First...the restaurant is unusual in that it is entirely dark (the wait staff is blind) and you really can't see the hand in front of your face once you're inside. Fortunately there was no food, just drinks during the gig...just as well, though it's difficult to even clap after a particularly good solo when you can't see where you've just put down your beer. Second...EOL rocked, managing to sweep from thoughtful Eddie Harris-type compositions to quirky covers of Eurythmics, Bjork...and Wayne Shorter. I'd heard the band a few weeks ago at Showcase for the finale of the St-Germain festival, but as so often happens for an opening act, the sound wasn't all it should be. That was totally solved on Sunday--the mix was great, quite surreal to listen to live music in the complete blackness, but overall a successful experiment. Must have been tricky getting the band (made up of three brothers) used to playing in the dark, with no visual cues. Denis Girard (keyboards) says they practised playing with airline sleeping masks over their eyes (I wish I had a photo of that!) Stay tuned for a CD from EOL trio this winter...
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