This Friday, veteran musician/performer Todd Rundgren will release his new live recording, Liars Live through Cleopatra Records. Only his third ever live recording, the 19-song set was originally captured during a performance June 9, 2004 at the Egg Performing arts Center in Albany, NY. The concert is a presentation that Rundgren’s established audiences are sure to enjoy. That is due in part to its featured set list, which will be discussed shortly. While the set list proves a positive, the general presentation of the concert is intriguing to say the least. This will be addressed a little later. Knowing it is not enough to doom the recording, one can move on to one more bonus, that being the bonus content that accompanies the concert. This will be addressed later, too. Each item noted here is important in its own way to the whole of Liars Live. The whole makes the recording overall a presentation that the most devoted Todd Rundgren fans will appreciate.
Liars Live, the forthcoming brand-new live recording from Todd Rundgren, is a presentation that the veteran musician/performer’s most devoted fans will find engaging and entertaining. That is due in part to its featured set list. Spanning 19 songs, the set list is not necessarily a career-spanning presentation. At the point at which the concert was recorded, Rundgren had released 19 albums, including Liars. Almost half of those records (eight total) are represented here, with Liars being the most heavily represented of those records, with seven of its 14 total tracks pulled for the concert. Other albums represented here are the likes of No World Order, Initiation and Nearly Human. So again while not exactly a widely-spanning set list, it does at least offer audiences a respectable glimpse into Rundgren’s catalog up to that point.
The performance of said set by Rundgren and his fellow musicians John Ferenzik, Jesse Gress, Prairie Prince, and Kasim Sulton – adds to the positive nature of the concert. That is because the band puts all of its energy into its collective performance. There is very little space between songs, as the group takes only moments between songs to catch its collective breath and move on to the next song. There is no attempt by Rundgren to waste any time making small talk with the audience, instead. Rather he and his friends use every moment possible to let the music do the talking.
The engagement and entertainment that the concert’s set list ensures among the noted audiences is ensured just as much through the general presentation thereof. For the most part, the presentation is actually positive. That is a surprise considering that there have been some concert recordings from other acts through Cleopatra Records in the past whose production values have made engagement and entertainment somewhat questionable. The audio and video presented here is actually expert. Perhaps the only real questionable aspect of the production — that general presentation – is in the lighting. There is something about the lighting at points that makes it feel like Rundgren and company were trying to make the set look like some kind of music video presentation. Thankfully that doesn’t last but too long. There is also one very brief moment in ‘Fascist Christ’ in which the audio cuts out. It lasts for all of perhaps five seconds, so it is not too bad. Either way it is enough that it deems noting. Keeping all of this in mind, the general production that went into the concert is another reason for Rundgren’s most devoted audiences to appreciate this new recording.
The bonus content that accompanies the concert rounds out its most important elements. The bonus material includes footage of Rundgren and company making their way around Japan, shopping, dining, and even taking in some local entertainment. The home movies’ third person perspective and raw quality makes for a certain unique feel that is actually quite engaging and entertaining in its own right. Audiences even get a little guerilla-style footage of him on stage while he and the gang are in Japan along the way, too. All things considered the fly-on-the-wall type presentation is sure to appeal to the aforementioned audiences just as much as the concert itself. When the concert and bonus content are considered collectively, they make Liars Live a mostly successful offering from Todd Rundgren and a welcome addition to this year’s field of new live DVDs and blu-rays.
Liars Live, the forthcoming new live recording from Todd Rundgren, is a mostly successful presentation from Rundgren and Cleopatra Records that will appeal primarily to the most devoted of his established audiences. That appeal comes in part through its set list. While not career-spanning even to that point, it does represent a respectable portion of Rundgren’s albums to the point at which the concert had been recorded. The band’s performance thereof is sure to keep the noted audiences entertained, too, thanks to the energy that the group collectively puts into its performance. The concert’s general production – its general presentation – is of note, too. That is because it actually is positive. There have been concert recordings released in the past by Cleopatra Records that have had some questionable presentations in regard to their quality. So to have this one not among that group makes it definitely worth noting. The bonus content that accompanies the recording puts the finishing touch to this presentation as it takes audiences overseas to Japan with Rundgren and company for part of a tour. It is a pretty run-of-the-mill presentation that follows the group around Japan, shopping, dining and performing, but its fly-on-the-wall home movie style presentation makes for a certain “warmth” to it for lack of better wording. Each item examined here is important in its own way to the whole of this recording. All things considered they make Liars Live a mostly successful presentation that will appeal primarily to the most devoted of Rundgren’s established audiences.
Liars Live is scheduled for release Friday through Cleopatra Records. More information on the recording is available along with all of Todd Rundgren’s latest news at:
Website: https://todd-rundgren.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/toddrundgren
More information on this and other titles from Cleopatra Records is available at:
Website: https://cleopatra-entertainment.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CleopatraEntertainmentEnt
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Cleopatra_Ent