He's written a song for a Sony advert and he's from Sweden - this was all I knew about Jose Gonzales.
I hadn't heard the song either. It's been such a long time since we've had a TV. It makes you realise how cut off you are, it's hard to keep up with trends in music and TV when it's not rammed in your face everyday.
Swedish music is a bit of a mixed bag really, on the one hand they have produced some of the best heavy metal in the world, on the other they are responsible for Abba, a band I hate above all others.
But I love guitar music, and I love to watch guitarists, mostly folk, very occasionally blues, I have a soft spot for Jack Johnson too. So I went along to the gig, because, as I have said before, live music is a rare luxury in China, and the tickets were free.
The first thing I noticed when Gonzales eventually took to the stage was his guitar. I liked it. It looked like a three-quarter size classical with a pick-up in the sound hole. Nylon strings, with the bass tuned real low, some sort of weird open tuning set up. Maybe G minor, maybe D, hard to say.
He played with his nails, which was nice to see, and the nylon strings sounded awesome, warm and clean. The first few songs were mainly based around one or two riffs, played repetitively with occasional changes and vocals over the top.
The music was pretty soft, the kind that generally accompanies an emotionally complex scene in an American teen soap opera. You know, the bit where the guy has had a row with his girlfriend and then thinks about it and decides that actually it was him who was in the wrong and goes to make up and then finds her on the beach and says 'I thought I'd find you here'....
And, hell, that's OK for ten minutes or so. But then song four came on, then song five, then song six... Jesus, this isn't going to pick up tempo, this is it. The songs went on, and on, and on. One emotional teen soap soundtrack after another. Relentless.
It was as if he had come up with a nice riff, then played it for two minutes and then stopped, making no effort to develop any of the songs beyond the superficial. The lyrics prattled on about fog and mist and, no doubt, the pain of life and love, and when the riff was exhausted he just stopped and smiled and the crowd screamed their approval.
And the crowd.... shit. Most people were gathered around the bar, drinking and chatting, but there was a hardcore by the stage who were the weirdest bunch I have seen in a long time. Half of them, eyes closed, swaying and other half turning around every five minutes and shusshing at anyone who was talking. Who are these freaks? They looked like a posse of evangelical Christians, with their beards and v-neck jumpers, their heads thrown back, swaying and smiling wildly. Shit, they must really like that Sony advert.
The one saving grace for me was song 13 or 14, I can't remember, which I was told is Gonzales' second single. It was the first song that actually had rhythm, and some semblance of structure. He also did some cool percussive stuff on the bridge with his right hand, which I am a sucker for. I don't remember the encores (encores?! Jesus...), because I was getting stuck into £4.50 bottles of beer in a last ditch attempt to beat my hangover, but I am told he absolutely murdered a classic song with a horrendous cover, which is always a great way to finish a gig.
To be fair, I'm sure for the fans Gonzales was awesome, after all, that's what they came to see. He has a great voice and great technique, as well as some cool riffs. Maybe in a few years the songs will develop and get some depth, but until then it remains, whether in an advert or on the OC soundtrack, little more than background music.
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