John Shand Posts

September 21, 2026 / Uncategorized

  Remedy (Ropeadope) 8/10 You know that feeling when you revisit a home from your past, to find the furniture changed and walls repainted, so any familiarity or nostalgia are jumbled with an unsettling newness? This third Zela Margossian Quintet album is like that. The familiarity of the snaking melodies…

September 19, 2026 / Theatre Reviews

The Greek Theatre, September 10 8/10 The day before seeing Joyful Noise, I attended a funeral in an Anglican church for a dear friend who was an atheist, and the vicar handled the dichotomy with commendable wit and nuance. Georg Friedrich Handel, by contrast, was allowed precious little nuance by…

September 15, 2026 / Concert Reviews

Enmore Theatre, September 6 8/10 A David Bowie tribute show by anyone else would make me wince. Singer/actor/writer/director John Cameron Mitchell’s song cycle specifically investigates Bowie’s darker side, which became so dominant with the Blackstar material, written when he knew he was dying. Mitchell’s bond with Bowie runs deeper than…