This post is a mish-mash of the pop culture stuff I’ve been experiencing the past month.

Nouvelle Vague

Watched the French group Nouvelle Vague in concert in L.A. Before watching them, I haven’t heard of them but I was convinced when I was told that they sang covers of 80s songs Bossa Nova style. Just found out that la nouvelle vague means new wave in French to refer to filmmakers from the 50s and 60s. Here’s a brief backgrounder from wiki:

Nouvelle Vague (French for “new wave”) is a bossa nova group initiated by French musicians Marc Collin and Olivier Libaux. The group has so far released two albums. The first one is an eponymous album consisting of bossa nova covers of songs from the New Wave and other genres. The covers include songs by Joy Division, Dead Kennedys, The Clash and Depeche Mode. The various female singers on Nouvelle Vague only performed songs they were not previously familiar with, to ensure that each cover would have a unique quality.

Their second album, Bande à Part, includes versions of “Ever Fallen in Love?” by Buzzcocks, “Blue Monday” by New Order, “The Killing Moon” by Echo and the Bunnymen and “Heart of Glass” by Blondie.

My favorites so far are Melt With You, Pride (In the Name of Love) and Oh Pamela. They were great to watch in concert even though the opening act, this duo called the Submarines, bombed.

80s Night at the Hollywood Bowl

It was my first time at the Hollywood Bowl last Saturday. I watched Totally 80s with some friends featuring the bands ABC, Psychedelic Furs and The Human League.

Everyone was almost older than me except for a few who came with their parents. Some went as far as sporting 80s fashion, with leg warmers, rocker teased hair, fishnet stockings, and the Tom Cruise Cocktail look.

I didn’t like ABC and the Furs. They performed listlessly, forgetting that they were actually supposed to interact with their audience of 15,000 people.

The Furs sang Pretty in Pink. I recalled the movie, having seen it only a few months back (as others would say, my childhood was deprived because I wasn’t able to watch this cult classic). I also recalled the Mororala pink razr commercial.

The Human League saved the concert from totally sinking. They had showmanship, audience interaction and well, their songs were way better for me. Listening to them was like going back in time, before our generation knew of rave, of house and the like.

Le Reve at the Wynn Hotel in Vegas

If you’re in Vegas, make sure to watch Le Reve, even if it’s the only thing you can make time for. The audience is made to sit encircling the performance area. Le Reve is a combination of performances in the water, on the air and on the stage that rises and falls depending on the scene. The performance is nothing short of spectacular and best of all, it makes one think and interpret the performance.

It lives up to its promise of being a dream and what an action-packed, awe-filled dream the show is.

Phantom of the Opera, Vegas-style, at the Venetian

The custom built theatre was said to have cost $40 million to build. The Phantom in Vegas did not disappoint. I grew up listening to the soundtrack, memorizing the lyrics and knowing the songs and the story by heart. The book was one of my favorites.

The sets were spectacular, with the ornateness. Since it’s Vegas, the pyrotechnique effects were grand. The singing and acting were up to standard with any theatre performance. Since I haven’t been to broadway in New York yet, contenting myself with stage performances in Toronto and Pantages here in LA, I can’t say for sure if this was up there with the rest. But I loved the performance.

As this is fall season here in LA and fall season equals debut of new tv shows, I will be writing about the shows I like watching in upcoming posts.