Big News Day in Music and a gem found on the internet

I should be studying for my exams, but here I am surfing the net and putting this off instead. Two items of note are featured here. First up, Phil Spector, the storied record producer credited with creating "the wall of sound" style of production has been found guilty of second degree murder.
I'm sure most of you know the details of the crime and trial, but in case you don't, background information is found below:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6984082.stm

Secondly, something that is both beautiful and saddening at the same time: the final North American concert Slowdive played. The concert occurred on May 21, 1994, and it is a fascinating performance to say the least.



If you've read my blog or listened to my show, I'm sure you've figured out that Slowdive is one of my favourite bands (if not my absolute favourite) and seeing this performace was emotionally stirring. At this stage in their carrer, Slowdive was a mess. Creation records was losing interest in the band, and funding for the tour from their American label dried up, forcing them to self-finance the final leg (which included this show). The emotional strain from an unsupportive label and a debt-ridden tour is very evident in the body language of the band (particuarly Rachel Goswell). The songs in the performance take on a new tone, as the ethereally uplifting atmosphere of the studio recordings transform into downbeat wails of agony. Live, these songs have an air of sadness that the studio versions downplay or lack altogether.
After the tour, Slowdive in essence broke up, and vocalist/guitarist recorded their final album, the more ambient and subdued Pygmalion by himself (singer Rachel Goswell provides vocals on two songs). Pygmalion was a commercial flop and Slowdive was dropped from Creation Records, an event that can be seen as the death of shoegaze. But Pygmalion was an album way ahead of its time, and its influence on other bands is easy to spot. The opening track Rutti can be seen as the first prototypical post-rock song, while the cello on 'Cello' is very reminiscent of Sigur Ros, as music critic Ian Watson points out.

Here's the setlist to their performance. Has a good mix of singles, and songs off of their first two albums Just For a Day and Souvlaki:

Machine Gun, Souvlaki Space Station, Slowdive, Catch the Breeze, 40 Days, Avalyn, Mellon Yellow, When The Sun Hits, Alison, Losing Today, Morningrise

Both albums, especially the latter, are shoegaze essentials. Neal Halstead, Rachel Goswell and drummer Ian McCutcheon later formed Mojave 3, which continues to record albums to this day. Though reunions are quite popular
these days, I don't see a Slowdive reunion happening at all, so I will simply close by saying R.I.P. Slowdive,
and thank you for making some of the most moving and dreamlike music I've ever encountered.