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Park Live 2015: Muse (UK), Incubus (USA), Triggerfinger (Belgium)
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June 19, 17:00
Otkritie Arena 
Park Live is an event that combines music, art, fun, sunshine, fresh air, a great audience, and a positive atmosphere. Park Live is a festival for people of all ages and people with different tastes in music. The festival takes place in Moscow on June 19th at the "Otkritie Arena" stadium ("Spartak"). The participants of the Park Live will be the really famous foreign bands: Muse (UK), Incubus (USA) and Triggerfinger (Belgium). The two last ones will come in Russia for the first time. Park Live will be an inspirational and entertaining festival, that encompasses all components of the successful summer event. In 2015 Park Live will last only one day but the first time there will be an afterparty of Park Live in Green Theater of Gorky Park with the participation of Norwegian electro band Royksopp.
Muse (UK)
 Muse's fusion of progressive rock, glam, electronica, and Radiohead-influenced experimentation is crafted by guitarist/vocalist Matthew Bellamy, bassist Chris Wolstenholme, and drummer Dominic Howard. Bored by the sleepy life provided by their hometown of Teignmouth, Devon, the three British friends began playing music together. They started the first incarnation of their band while only 13 years old, changing the name of the group from Gothic Plague to Fixed Penalty to Rocket Baby Dolls as time passed. By 1997, the bandmates settled on the name Muse and released their self-titled debut EP on Dangerous Records, followed by the Muscle Museum EP in 1998. The group's emotive, passionate sound and live presence drew critical acclaim and industry buzz, and Muse signed a deal with Maverick Records after a trip to New York's CMJ festival. The singles "Cave" and "Uno" preceded their debut full-length album, Showbiz, which was released toward the end of 1999. Two years later, Muse issued The Origin of Symmetry and had a major hit with "Hyper Music," which helped propel the album to platinum status in the U.K. In 2002, fans were treated to Hullabaloo Soundtrack, a combination rarities/live set that peaked at number ten in Europe. Muse then returned with a proper studio effort, Absolution, which became the band's first album to chart in America. A short North American tour in the spring of 2004 coincided with Muse's spot on the fifth annual Coachella Music and Arts Festival, and Absolution eventually went gold in the U.S. Back at home, the album earned Muse their second platinum certification. Released two years later, Black Holes and Revelations marked the band's brightest, most dynamic set of material to date, topping the U.K. album chart within its first week and earning Muse their second consecutive number one album at home. In America, Black Holes and Revelations broke into the Top Ten. Muse toured Europe, America, Australia, and Southeast Asia in support of the album, and their dynamic stage performance (which won the band multiple awards for Best Live Act, including accolades from the NME Awards, the Q Awards, and the Vodafone Live Music Awards) was captured on 2008's H.A.A.R.P. Live from Wembley. The trio spent the remainder of that year - as well as the early part of 2009 - in the recording studio, eventually emerging with the release of The Resistance in September. The band kicked off a world tour, headlining shows as well as supporting U2. In 2011, Bellamy and company were asked to write the official theme for the 2012 Summer Olympics, which were being held in London, and the band returned with the triumphant rock anthem "Survival," which would also become the lead single of their next album, 2012's The 2nd Law. The road-hungry band undertook another large-scale tour to promote the album, and their spectacular show at Rome's Olympic Stadium - complete with pyrotechnics, video walls, and acrobats - was filmed in ultra-high definition for the concert movie Live at Rome Olympic Stadium, which was slated for release theatrically and on DVD in December 2013. In early March 2015 the band dropped "Dead Inside," the first single from their seventh studio long-player Drones, which arrived on June 8.
Incubus (USA)
 Incubus became one of the most popular alt-metal bands of the new millennium, setting themselves apart from a crowded field with a tireless touring ethic and a broad musical palette. Formed in 1991 in the San Fernando Valley suburb of Calabasas, California, the band's early lineup was comprised of tenth-grade classmates Brandon Boyd (vocals, percussion), Mike Einziger (guitar), Alex Katunich (aka Dirk Lance; bass), and José Pasillas (drums). Their early funk-metal sound was heavily influenced by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but broadened over the next few years to incorporate thrash, rap-metal, post-grunge rock, and grinding alt-metal à la Korn or the Deftones. By the time the musicians had graduated from high school, they had already been playing all-ages shows around Southern California on a regular basis. In 1995, Incubus added hip-hop turntablist DJ Lyfe (aka Gavin Koppel) to their lineup and recorded the independently released album Fungus Amongus. That, coupled with a strong local following, helped the band earn a deal with the Epic Records subsidiary Immortal. Incubus' first major-label release was the six-song EP Enjoy Incubus, which was released in early 1997 and consisted of previous demos that were revamped in the studio. Their full-length debut album, S.C.I.E.N.C.E., followed before the year's end. Incubus then hit the road with a vengeance, opening for bands like Korn, Primus, 311, Sublime, and Unwritten Law. They had amassed enough of a following by 1998 to land a slot on that summer's Ozzfest tour, and they rounded out the year with a stint on Korn's inaugural Family Values tour, by which time DJ Lyfe had departed and been replaced by DJ Kilmore (first name Chris). With their momentum and exposure slowly building, Incubus returned to the studio and delivered their follow-up album, Make Yourself, in late 1999. The group went right back out on the road, and their stint on the 2000 Ozzfest helped cement the new audience that the band's new single, "Pardon Me," was pulling in. Although Make Yourself barely broke the Top 50 on the album charts, it was a tenacious seller that eventually pushed past the double-platinum mark. The second single, "Stellar," was a smaller-sized hit on rock radio, but the album's biggest song didn't hit the airwaves until 2001, when "Drive" became their first Top Ten hit on the pop charts. Incubus expanded their audience by playing Moby's Area: One package tour that summer, and with "Drive" still fresh in the public's mind, they released Morning View during the fall of 2001. It entered the charts at number two, confirming that Incubus had diligently worked themselves into stardom. "Wish You Were Here," "Nice to Know You," and "Warning" were all popular on rock radio, and the band naturally toured heavily in support - this time as a headliner. In early 2003, Incubus became embroiled in a contract dispute with Sony and filed a lawsuit to have their deal terminated under California labor laws. In April, the band announced the departure of bassist Dirk Lance. Within days, fellow Incubus guitarist Mike Einziger called upon his Time Lapse Consortium mate Ben Kenney (who had also played with the Roots) to be Lance's permanent replacement. The group remained a part of the Sony empire, however, and released A Crow Left of the Murder on Epic/Immortal in early 2004, which hit number two on the Billboard Top 200. Touring dates followed before Incubus headed home in November to take a well-deserved break. The guys spent the next two years individually exploring things outside of the band - including music, art, film, and literature - though they also remembered to work on and finish their sixth album, which was recorded over a year's time in both L.A. and Atlanta. The resulting record, Light Grenades, debuted atop the charts upon its release in November 2006. The musicians then returned to their individual endeavors, with Boyd announcing in early 2008 that the group had taken a loose hiatus. Nevertheless, the following year found them issuing the two-disc hits compilation Monuments and Melodies and returning to the road for a summer tour. By 2010, they'd returned to the studio with longtime collaborator Brendan O'Brien, who helped them compose one of their darker albums to date, 2011's If Not Now, When? The album debuted at number two on the Billboard charts upon its July 2011 release. As promotion for If Not Now, When? Incubus rented a storefront on LaBrea Avenue in Los Angeles and launched a multimedia retrospective of their career, highlighted by four nights of live music by the band. Selections from those four nights were compiled for the 2012 live album Incubus HQ Live, released in August of that year.
Triggerfinger (Belgium)
 Triggerfinger are really not your average rock band. They consist of guitarist/lead singer Ruben Block, drummer Mario Goossens and bassist Paul Van Bruystegem, who goes by the nicknames of Lange Polle or Monsieur Paul. They are not very conventional looking either, for your average rock band who are only now beginning to win real acclaim for their music. The lead singer looks like he could be your best mates Dad, bassist Paul Van Bruystegem looked a bit like a burly bodyguard/West End bouncer - with his large frame, bald head and don't-mess-with-me vibe which he gives off, behind his dark glasses, although judging from his facial expressions throughout the gig, we think he might be a bit of a joker and certainly seemed full of life! We could hardly see the drummer Mario from where we were standing, but we could see his hands waiving and causing a whirlwind of noise and rock from the back of the stage. Triggerfinger are a band who have gone about earning their fan base and developing their live set, by years of working and putting in the hard work, having spent years touring clubs, pubs, festivals and dive bars across Europe. This summer has seen them playing some highly prestigious shows, including being chosen as the warm-up act for The Rolling Stones at Hyde Park! That is some incredible feat and a long way from the dive bars of Antwerp, which shows just how far Triggerfinger have come. There is no questioning their musical ability or their on-stage charisma and their larger than life characters and persona could be seen and felt from every song played. Each one of them brings something unique to the band and their songs were simply brilliant slices of rock and roll energy. It is somewhat bizarre that they are only really becoming to the fore of the music scene now, as it feels like these guys should have been brought to the publics attention many years ago! Despite being more on the mature side, this band have enough energy to keep up with any of the twenty something rock-bands who are around at the moment. Stand out songs from the set included the fantastic All This Dancin' Around and our absolute favourite song of theirs - Let It Ride, which their fans absolutely adored and it sounded fantastic live. The fans in the Borderline consisted mainly of bearded and long-haired, real rock lovers and you could imagine any one of the crowd being serious musicians who are also in bands themselves and they were engrossed from the start of their set to the end. It was a real treat to see them in such a small and intimate setting of the sweat-covered, red and black lit rock venue that is the Borderline - a place where so many iconic artists have played and we always love coming here. The iconic feel of the place is never in doubt and you are reminded of this as you walk in through the main doors and have to pass the artists wall, which feature signed photographs of the likes of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, R.E.M, Sheryl Crowe and Damien Rice, to name a few great artists who have played on the stage. Triggerfinger really do need to headline their own stadium shows, as the Borderline was too small a venue for their anthemic songs, which bounced all over the tiny venue! This was a pure rock and roll gig in every sense, amazing musicians, great songs, strong personalities and enough fire in their belly to give them the edge over similar bands in their field. The audience lapped up every song - we saw couples kissing, beer being thrown into the air, plenty of people crowd-surfing, a mini mosh-pit and long-haired rockers losing themselves in the moment of every song, everything that you would get from a rock and roll gig, but in a much condensed setting.
Röyksopp
 Since they first burst onto the scene with the release of their classic debut album Melody A.M back in 2001, Norwegian electronic music overlords Röyksopp have only released three further studio albums. First came 2005's more experimental The Understanding, then 2009's extrovert, pop-lead Junior followed swiftly by its more introvert sister album, Senior. That was back in 2010. Four years later, however, and following a burst of creativity instigated by personal upheaval and the general living of lives they're about to release their second album in the space of six months - following Do It Again, their collaborative mini-album with fellow Scandinavian legend, Robyn - in the shape of the multi-faceted, The Inevitable End. "We feel there's a lot of music out there that just doesn't have any identity - something that we really strive for in our music," says Torbjørn of the time it takes between releases. "We don't feel like we're in any hurry; we intend to make music we cannot find elsewhere - which is both ambitious and time consuming," agrees Svein. "And we also want our music to have longevity, therefore we always seek to produce and engineer it in a way that steers clear of generic production trends." As with most things Röyksopp do there is a multi-faceted reason behind the album's title, The Inevitable End. While they're keen to point out that it doesn't mark the end of Röyksopp, they do see it as their final album. "We feel like this is a goodbye to the traditional album format," explains Svein. "In our consecutive run of albums, we have been able to say what we want to say and do what we want to do with the LP. We're not going to stop making music, but the album format as such, this is the last thing from us." Having now created five complete bodies of work, the pair feel like the future is open to being more experimental with how they share their music, be it with EPs, one-off singles or something more visually focused. "With Melody A.M we felt like we established our own voice and take on electronic music. Then, with The Understanding, we wanted to move slightly off-centre and experiment more - without losing what is uniquely identified as Röyksopp. With Junior we wanted to be a bit more extrovert, focusing on vocals and youthful energy. With Senior, we wanted to flip it around completely; instrumental, introvert and hidden," continues Svein. "With The Inevitable End we've moved into a darker subject matter, with emphasis on the lyrical content. This candid approach feels very both personal, sincere and conclusive." "With this album it became clear we wanted to make an album in a classical sense even if it's the last one we make," adds Torbjørn. With a story running from the opening, fuzzy electronics of Skulls - with its teasing "if you want to ride" mantra - to the closing, fan-dedicated Thank You, this is an album to be enjoyed from start to finish; a complete story that takes you from A to Z. The title also relates to the album's core themes of loss (be it emotional or physical), the passing of different eras in people's lives and the effects of conflicting emotions, themes that are showcased exquisitely in Monument (T.I.E. Version), the epic collaboration with Robyn that acts as bridge between Do It Again and The Inevitable End." Re-worked for this album, its power is even more magnetic. "I think it's fair to say that the two records are dwelling on the same themes. This album has a strong lyrical content and I think that's more evident than on any of our other albums - I guess writing songs and working closely with Robyn has had an effect," says Svein. "Without being too gloomy or dark, there's been turmoil in our lives. And prior to making Do It Again, Robyn was in a similar space, which is one of the reasons why we're so compatible." With the two records being worked on simultaneously, The Inevitable End may share a similar headspace to Do It Again, but this is very much a quintessentially Röyksopp album, even if that definition is itself brilliantly malleable. "We're always looking to push certain boundaries, but there's something there that's been there all the time and that binds it altogether," explains Torbjørn. "We're not keen on repeating ourselves." So while the opening track Skulls feels like a classic Röyksopp song - all squelchy bass lines, filtered synths and vocodered, yet soulful vocals - the album also takes in sophisticated, delicate heartbreak on the Man Without Country collaboration Sordid Affair; odd, shape-shifting ambience on the Robyn-featuring Rong; bouncing electro pop on the deceptively upbeat Save Me (featuring regular contributor Susanne Sundfør on vocal duties) and the deliriously sad, cry-on-the-dancefloor classic, I Had This Thing, one of four collaborations with Jamie Irrepressible. In fact, as with all their albums, the importance of picking the right vocalist for each song was paramount. "We always want to find the right voice matching the specific sentiment of a track," states Svein. "And the people we've been fortunate enough to work with, are people who not only possess brilliant vocal abilities individually - they also in their own unique way, bring their own universe with them," he continues. "We are inviting them to collide their universe into ours. It's not about having a voice for hire. We want the people we work with to feel like they can involve themselves to the fullest - it's about finding the perfect voice for our state of mind," adds Torbjørn. At the core of the album is this universal sense of conflicting emotions and choice; in pursuit of fulfillment, how far can you go? Should one heed one's conscience or succumb to one's desires - albeit the moral ramifications? And then there’s doubt and denial. And the battle between reason and desire, that's summed up perfectly on I Had This Thing as Jamie softly flits between the lines "I still don't know just what I've done" and the emotional final mantra of "I never meant to let you go" while a cavalcade of electronic textures descends around him. But while the lyrics deal with darker themes, this isn't a musically introspective album. This is a cohesive, fully realised electronic symphony from a pair of production geniuses constantly looking to innovate. "Senior, for example, is very introspective; both secret and raw production-wise. The Inevitable End, on the other hand, has a very clean and crisp production in comparison," explains Svein. "We wanted this pristine surface to act as a contrast to the grittier subject matter that lies beneath. At first listen, one might get the impression that T.I.E is a place of solace and bliss. But if you pay attention to the lyrics, you'll tap into the somber undercurrent running through it all - as if the music is bleeding. This is not a dance album at all. This is home listening as far as we're concerned. It's headphones music." All you need do is pop them on, sit back and let Röyksopp take you into their own special world again.
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