Mazzy Star

I was lucky enough to stumble upon Mazzy Star's performance at Field Day 2012. As night closed in and the rain crashed down on Victoria Park, the Village Mentality tent provided the perfect warmth, cover and intimacy to discover this amazing band for the first time.
Somehow, a trio of fantastic albums in the '90s had bypassed me completely. But the bewitching, drowsy and enveloping rock had me instantly captivated. Hope Sandoval's vocals carried that beguiling and effortless quality shared by other altrock artists from the same decade - immediately reminiscent of Fiona Apple, Sparklehorse and Cat Power. There was a beautiful lethargy about the heavy, distorted guitar, creating a shimmering, curative haze; preoccupations with rain, mud and tiredness evaporated. The tent filled over the course of half an hour, as festival goers - who had called time on enduring Franz Ferdinand in the outdoors - were drawn towards the mesmering and introspective glow of Mazzy star. A pretty timeless moment was shared by everyone at the Village Mentality stage that night.

Catching them in Ventura was my top bucket list item, especially since they can go a decade or more between concerts (they’ve really never toured; at best a few shows here and there). It was everything I hoped it would be. Hope’s vocals were still amazing. (If you’re complaining about the lighting — or lack thereof — or Hope’s mercurial nature, I assume you were new to this band. It’s just something you have to make peace with early on. Then the quirkinesses becomes a bit enduring, kind of like the Soup Nazi scenes in Seinfeld, lol.) Sadly, with David passing away this year, I don’t think we’ll ever see Hope playing MS songs again. So I’m even more happy I caught them live.

How magical can a night under the influence of Mazzy Star be? Hope Sandoval's voice is hypnotic and takes you back to a place hidden deep between the 90s and your soul. No way to speak, you have to listen, breathless, to a voice crawling in the dark, far from the lights, while David Roback weaves the loom of his music. Songs like "Halah", "She Hangs Brightly", "So tonight that I might See", but also the new compositions from their comeback album "Seasons of your Day", leave you breathless, waiting for the coup de grace. And it is sure to happen, straight to your heart, full, filled of Hope.

With David Roback passing away this year it is over. All of us who were blessed to see them know what is missing. I still don't understand how people without listening to their music could attend their concerts and expect what? And then complain about the lighting, the show? They were dedicated musicians not industry products. Something totally unknown today.

Such a great venue for such a great show! Not a bad seat in the house! They sounded wonderful! it’s really amazing to me that after 30 years of performing THEIR music in the way THEY choose to perform it, there are still some people bitching and whining about the low lighting.

Saw them last night at the Opera House. Sounded great but the lighting was atrocious. I’ve seen more detail in Indonesian shadow puppet shows.

The only thing worse was the support act. I walked out after two songs. Woeful.

Guitar playing spectacular and haunting. Hope Sandoval’s voice as good as it is on their recordings. Mazzy Star don’t perform that often so catch them if you can, you won’t be disappointed.