Michael Gira losing his temper

Michael Gira blowing his mind with a fucked up amplifier. Lisbon gig at ZDB, 30.05.12.

[@Chris-bi5er]

I met MG out the back of a Swans gig once. Just sitting on his own in the car park behind the venue, bottle of water. I just said thanks for the show, didn’t bother him for an autograph or photo, he said he was pleased to hear it and thanked me for coming. Total gentleman, despite spending the last two hours screaming and spitting on himself.

[@happyhappy85]

I'd be terrified if MG got mad at me

[@febbra2]

happyhappy85 I'd rather nail myself to a cross

[@thisiskris017]

The fuck why? He's a gangly "art" rocker lol

[@happyhappy85]

@@thisiskris017 Yeah like, dudes been in prison for selling drugs in the middle east. He's a pretty big dude. His music is enough to strike fear in to the heart tbh

[@thisiskris017]

@nick I don't know if he's covered in muscle but 6'10 is damn impressive if true. I'm sure he can handle himself, thought it was weird someone would specifically be terrified of this guy in particular

[@CaptainResident]

@@thisiskris017 it's mainly that Michael Gira both has a past that beefed him up- he was a construction worker for a while to keep himself sustained -and he's known for having a nasty temper when people piss him off. Makes him a bit of a force to be reckoned with.

[@n_o_]

"Because. I want to be amplified."

[@Sighbot]

Wouldn’t you?

[@cyrussayah3416]

stupid question stupid response, I say.

[@numbnuts375]

@@cyrussayah3416 "want me to play it acoustically come out there and sit in with you?" Is a stupid question of course hes going to say yes

[@ColombianThunder]

@@numbnuts375 it was a rhetorical question

[@BlargGargle]

I read the words "Michael Gira" and "losing his temper" in the same sentence and THIS is what I got?! 1.5/10

[@rodrigofbcardoso]

Well you just watched the video so, 1 more view. Looks like the title is attractive

[@goodmorningcptn]

Rodrigo Cardoso Probably becaue ManifoldCuriosity was expecting Gira to kick someone in the back of the face. I sure know I was :(

[@BlargGargle]

I do keep forgetting how old Gira is now, so I guess this "git off mah yard!!" outburst is par for the course...

[@boyo7918]

GoodmorningCaptain >Back of their face How would one achieve this?

[@bduerirecords8986]

shut up idiot

[@atarirob]

I'd probably be just as annoyed. Nothing more humiliating than having your equipment malfunction on you in front of people.

[@user-qfcbjwk]

For having living it, i strongly agree...

[@alexm9744]

HUMILIATION'S A DISEASE, NOTHING BEATS HUMILIATION

[@leonlopez5704]

I thought the technical fritz was Gira being avant garde.

[@FeathersMcGraw_]

It was, as was his outburst. All just part of the performance.

[@Robert-gr4mi]

If by "loosing his temper" you mean "getting annoyed", then yes, Michael Gira lost his temper

[@pommemelon7026]

No he means he lost his temper

[@seencrazyshiii]

​@@pommemelon7026 No

[@noahsmith1726]

the way Gira changes from the calm warm man he is in interviews and to some audiences to the madman he can be at many times is awesome to watch.

[@supadupaswag737]

+noah smith mushrom

[@majorbawb]

@@supadupaswag737 Turns out its Joseph up there

[@wetigaz]

To be honest I'd be afraid that Gira would explode at me if I was filming

[@Spandex08]

why would you be, i notice this trend on swans videos - where everyone tries to portray gira as some otherwordly beast.

[@wetigaz]

+BlackPaw yeah i agree with you now. I can't remember writing that comment but doesn't he hate filming? He seems the type at least

[@Spandex08]

***** everyone will get mad if they get annoyed by not paying attention to their art, a professor in a room, a pianist, ive seen bill hicks rage because someone from the audience shouted you suck... gira puts alot of effort, and anyone in his place would like if they would appreciate his art.

[@wetigaz]

that's very true

[@ryanre103]

In the early days Gira supposedly would fight people one on one and stuff, this image has sort of stuck around although some of it is a meme by people who know Gira usually calm and polite

[@FureonNectarmoon]

Gira exudes so much pressure during this performance he manages to make not one, but THREE water bottles to fall. 1:23 First bottle down 2:09 Another bottle down 3:40 Third bottle falls I assume the fourth one only survived because he wasn't able to finish the song.

[@soundsofsoundsof]

There is actually four bottles, another falls at 2:16

[@glipk]

He hates Oxygen

[@ceef8688]

this made me laugh so hard--what a sensible edit of this video, to just jump to your bottle markers. It's like I found a shortcut map that used someplace with a hilarious name, like "Whidlick's Pond"

[@richardroberson2564]

This is so funny lmao

[@tylersims6937]

Yo, there's an Elliott Smith gig where his beer(or water?) bottles slowly glide off the lil table..good shit.

[@pablo6733]

"Sergio come up Here.......NOW! HERE! NOW!

[@gimmedataids]

+Los Falopios haha and he just rolls right into that song

[@MCPretzelM999]

no sound no life no amplify

[@WallaceAyers]

No here/no now

[@anonymousDerp]

I love the way he says what the fuck.

[@connorbowen3987]

Swans really was a good name for his band. He stated he wanted something beautiful with a temperament. I understand why he would get mad too. Unless you're a messy sounding band, then you can't just get away with it. Most artists who care about their art are perfectionists. Most people, including me, can never fully understand what it's like until you become an artist yourself.

[@Yuckod]

i disagree. I think there are many great artists who truely connected with themselves through their music but were no where close to being perfectionists. How can art ever truly be "perfect"?

[@lazarus3798]

@@Yuckod It's about striving. The moment you give up the ideal or the vision, you lose something

[@sarumadaki]

@@lazarus3798 exactly.

[@freelance_commie]

@@Yuckod thats not what perfectionist means. It’s a mentality and attention to detail, an attitude towards one’s art and having specific expectations. A perfectionist is not someone that believes perfect exists.

[@nofrbls3640]

@@Yuckodagreed

[@enslimed]

This happened at their set in Baltimore last April. He didn't yell at anybody, but he looked like he was about to have an aneurysm.

[@gimmedataids]

+x9natedawg It's almost like he doesn't enjoy playing live. Like it stresses him out too much for him to enjoy it

[@enslimed]

exactly yeah. it also seems like if the crowd doesn't behave exactly the way he wants which is most likely 99% of the time he gets really irritated. he reminds me a lot of mark kozelek. except mark handles it a lot worse and it always ends with really funny results

[@jamesstrong3170]

I hope your not referring to the war on drugs incident as funny cause it was painfully unfunny

[@enslimed]

James Strong I mean not that incident specifically, although personally I did find that to be quite funny.

[@Benjamin_Bratten]

I wish there was a studio version of THIS Oxygen.

[@McBignLargeBJ64]

there is! oxygen EP

[@SKSCanada54]

Pretty funny how everything on the stool beside him falls over.

[@moviesforadults2932]

Nothing can make one more livid that seeing a tech staff member not be alert to technical mishaps like this. Gira has every right to be pissed. He wants to give his audience a stellar experience. Not some half-assed bullshit.

[@sirvidia]

sounds they rented him shitty gear

[@JonathanNelsonOfficial]

didn't get any sense of him being an asshole. he's a dedicated artist trying to make a living and traveled to a foreign country to play songs by himself on a guitar. his dissatisfaction is completely warranted in every way, and he handles it like a man.

[@justiceleague3000]

I kind of liked the weird way it clipped the guitar sound. I thought it was intentional.

[@bduerirecords8986]

no one cares...

[@FureonNectarmoon]

As if cutting off the oxygen!

[@Sighbot]

B'dueri! Records Well, it’s the KZbin comment section. People can comment whatever they please, express their thoughts, etc. Moaning about it isn’t going to change it.

[@jager9022]

@@bduerirecords8986 I care

[@leonardsimonis2376]

I also think that's actually a cool sound effect. Many musicians come up with new interesting sound out of accidents...Although I don't think this particular malfunction is really something spectacular. But in general, such surprises also can be a good or interesting thing. He just obviously didn't like it.

[@Anonymous58815]

He could have handled this a lot worse, honestly.

[@Neel-ff4mn]

I wonder how badly MC Ride would've handled a shitty amp...

[@immaterialsoph]

Neel 2000 ride would've been seriously annoided

[@Neel-ff4mn]

Have u seen footage of it?

[@bduerirecords8986]

no one asked

[@Joshau735]

@jubjub 86 holy trinity

[@rjl4340]

Inspired by Jeff Magnum

[@saavmusica]

rusza j Mangum* XD

[@rjl4340]

Juan Esteban Saavedra yeah i know i hate myself

[@CB-qg3yh]

"Are you recording MEEEEEEEE?!!!"

[@DaRkShadOwxXx14]

I like ur picture

[@youtubeuserdan4017]

That "What the fuck? Come up!" was honestly a nice addition even though it was unintentional.

[@SaumBodhi]

Actually, I would be kinda blown away by the lack of responce from the sound people over such obvious technical sound problems. Gira most likely knows how to fix a few things like this, depending how technical, but i think he was pissed at the fact that service were not holding their end of the job. I would have WTFed a few times myself. He wasn't throwing chairs or anything.

[@martinfowler7755]

I've never performed for a crowd, that said, I think he handled that well. He's an intense man and he kept control.

[@Voldemort_Pendlegrass]

Couldn't help but chuckle when a member of the audience asked why he couldn't play without the amp being fixed.

[@RadonX9]

4:52 sounds like a oneohtrix point never track

[@napndash]

Explains why he was pissed

[@petermoore7796]

@@napndash lol

[@christianhamiter2668]

I think he's more pissed that that the issue was obvious and no one came up to fix it. You can hear it pretty clearly multiple times in the video before he gets upset.

[@xylin3683]

Really disappointed that last bottle never fell

[@a.cardott3928]

LOL i like how when he says "What the FK" you can't tell right away if it's his lyrics or not

[@cdeization]

lol that's losing your temper? he said please and didn't swear at the tech. who seemed slow to respond. imo if it's your job as soon as you hear something you should be right by the stage ready to jump in.

[@TheDoomedartist]

Exactly

[@annalinevanluvender1384]

I worked as a techie for 2 years, you are absolutely correct. And honestly, I've had people react much worse than this to stuff much smaller than this.

[@RS-nc5qx]

It’s gotta be hell working with Gira. You can tell he’s demanding and knows what he wants.

[@delaybrainsshriver]

Being authentic scares most people ..gira is rad

[@munyansebastien7127]

Saw Swans in 2014. Gira mic kept giving him electric shocks. He never lost his cool, even though it visibly bothered him. We talked after the show, very nice guy, nothing like the reputation he had in the early days.

[@mountpainproject]

I watch this video as much for the performance as the ensuing display of his humanity.

[@mrlucas9072]

WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

[@TeaDrinker3000]

5:30 that little bit of banter with the audience is evidence of him being a great guy even when mad

[@Koettnylle]

He was being sarcastic

[@icd.f44.9]

that was not 'banter', if I was that guy my night would've been ruined

[@jacklapeyrouse7974]

@@icd.f44.9 maybe ur just weak hearted

[@growskull]

​@@icd.f44.9 it wouldve made my night wtf? having gira speak and laugh with you

[@icd.f44.9]

@@growskull you might be the only person thinking that he is laughing WITH you

[@CelticMudkip]

This wasn't as bad as I thought. I can see why people would say he's being whiney but I'd be pretty pissed if I was in that position, especially if I don't have a full band to help carry a song when a mistake like this happens. This is just him with full raw emotion and the amp is ruining the most intense moments. He still took it better than a lot of people would have and not only stayed (I can name some who would have stormed off the stage), but made some jokes about it. He's a champ.

[@robertoborgs]

honestly he handles this shit like a gentleman. speaking both as a musician and as a spectator, nothing annoys me more than a sound tech who doesn't lift a finger to help solve a problem.

[@SXI96]

I thought the clipping was all part of the eccentricity of the song, tbh I didn't know what the hell was going on and then he gets pissed, Gira's music is a hallucinatory, random, head fuck, but in a weird, captivating way, he is an interesting guy, at least he said please haha..

[@acherontiastyx4076]

Musicians are artists, and the best artists demand the optimal performance from their equipment/co-contributors. As a perfectionist myself, I feel his pain and I don't blame him at all for feeling aggravated when things don't go too well while performing. Give the guy a break.

[@illpoetic3731]

OOOOAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH OOOAAAAAAAAOOOOWWWWW

[@estudiosfolkloreiberoamericano]

+iLL Poetic it sounds like a cat, but it's really passionate and nice for me

[@bduerirecords8986]

shut up

[@boyo7918]

Lookit all that water

[@HoodeloodumGAME]

'what the fuck? come up! ... AAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOHHHHHHHH'

[@justinmikko1321]

So this is oxygen before to be kind

[@whitechocolatte5863]

I’m just glad that he’s not mad due to the audience or something.

[@HughLeopard]

Well, better than diving into the crowd and beating the shit out of people for headbanging like he did in the eighties.

[@charmicarmicat2981]

He was still pretty polite about it honestly

[@ploskoploskin]

It Feels terrible, when you are the sound engeneer in this situation)

[@rondoobz9035]

YA BLEW IT CHRIS

[@ybonnecalibaraibanez3854]

this is a very peculiar kind of music...not easily understood. not easily appreciated.. there's one thing evident here. the music of Michael Gira defines his whole self as a person..it's really him. right there on that stage

[@falloutMAN84]

"FUCK. Oh well, so much for that song." Haha..

[@ColonPal]

Didn't see him lose his temper at all.

[@Crapoop765]

2:15 RIP water

[@NoiseKidd]

He got pissed off at Christoph kind of like this for not having his volume loud enough when I saw them in DC this year

[@shawntik1]

I was there and I remember that!

[@NoiseKidd]

shawntik1 Haha is was awkward as shit! At one point though when Christoph was told to turn it up, he did and when Gira wasn't looking he turned it back down haha, also one time he dropped his slide pick and looked at me and the guy I was next to and he motioned me if I wanted to take it!

[@joshrobison1125]

love this version

[@jonathanwhitfield2864]

Michael Gira seems like a scary guy.

[@Blackoudmusic]

He's nice IRL

[@MalcomJuliaMorgan]

he should go on tour with aaron lewis and they fight each other, one amplified and one acoustic

[@halflifefan1000]

I don't know why but the way he says please when asking for help has to be one of the funniest things I've heard

[@HAAHVVAAVV]

Best performance ive seen of Gira so far

[@shreivox]

He's humble and i like it!

[@jonesjim6698]

I love this man :)

[@SamShadow93]

I'm glad the audience gave him a good round of applause. That must've been frustrating for him : [

[@parhelio___]

2:17 This man is making water bottles fall with an electro-acoustic guitar. He is showing us the way,

[@andrewbennett6482]

This is a pretty cool version of the song, does anyone know which chords he's playing?

[@conrar1320]

Will from Inbetweeners getting worried there at the bottom. 5:13

[@youknowhuwitis]

Con Rar Fiesty one you are

[@oscarh5439]

Best comment

[@crieverytim]

Unexpected comment

[@growskull]

HAHAHA THAT'S GREAT WTF 🎉

[@moviesforadults2932]

Now THAT is a musician!

[@connormchugh8456]

The way Gira performs here kinda reminds me of Tom Waits, at least in the first and more mundane lyrics.

[@fadlinugraha347]

GODDAMIT CHRIS, YOU HAD ONE JOB!

[@Twolliebollie]

i saw swans live in 2016 or so, and one of the sound guys fucked up the monitors and he just started yelling at him over the microphone in the middle of a song lol

[@sharjesm]

Goddammit, Chris. You had to do one thing.

[@user-bf6gz8ej4o]

This guy is like the Hannibal Lecter of music

[@Blackoudmusic]

Nah, apparently, he's actually a nice guy outside the music

[@aye2you]

Dude's a Legend

[@panpropal2404]

Love this genius :)))))

[@SantiagoGarcia-od5gr]

Hoy lo podrè ver en concierto en Medellín, en la Universidad Eafit, por invitación de un gran amigo. Swans hoy en Medellín, Colombia y provenientes en su gira desde el sur del continente.

[@julian3265]

¿Qué tal fue?

[@pablo-wm2iu]

mágico, hermoso, surreal

[@mariosopaify]

michael gira vino a colombia?!

[@julian3265]

Hace unos meses, sí.

[@AndreDourado777]

It sounds fucking delicious when sped up to 1.5

[@kerkosrall]

Someone has the lyrics of this version of Oxygen?

[@debonaire_nerd]

Listen...when Michael says "HHHHAAAAAAAAAWWWWWW-AWWWAAAOOOWWAAAA-WOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW" - you come up.

[@tomt5745]

Gira. A unit

[@nicknickson3650]

Chris and Sergio standing by watching like 😨

[@NyanGeneral]

5:23 A perfect response to michael would've been like "hell yeah"

[@joeboybeaton]

What song is this?

[@PirateZ1]

And from there on he would forever be known as "One-armed Chris"

[@Max-mn1qn]

5:28 yes please papi

[@misterpopeofficial.]

Lol I love when he says 'AH MAN'

[@Koettnylle]

The confused applause tho

[@JustDatBoi]

The “please don’t abuse us, Gira” applause

[@one_man_community]

We not gonna talk about the water bottles interrupting his song?

[@Ulysses922]

Are you Chris?

[@davidsanderson5918]

The voice from the audience asking "why not?" was either utterly ignorant or deliberately provoking him to get a reaction. Surely the latter. No one can be that dense.

[@boredtrophyhusband]

headbanging or nodding is one of the most basic ways of releasing endorphins that induce trance-like states.

[@denialfalls2724]

I understand why he felt annoyed, feels lame to have your trance broken like that.

[@TheKingBJ]

The amp skipping was on time, I wouldn't even complain, just go with it, and after finishing the song I'd call for help

[@karolchmielewski9401]

i love how bottles start falling off at 2:09

[@HelloWorld-kq3jt]

I love Swans and MG. But I would have played through and took a break and fixed the problem. Of course if you are in the emotional moment it’s hard.

[@haroldz2323]

Well this shit happens....He is only human.Yes Mike Gira has a temper....so what!!! He wants to give the best performance he can!!! I would bitch too.

[@criss8572]

swans em lisboa dayuummmm

[@ceef8688]

I've never seen him so cross! If only music could work to calm his jangled nerves.

[@danielcardone5455]

Michael,we love you.

[@ScumOfCaligula]

Gira wasn't a cock. He was playing, live, and the sound was fucked up. Here's whatcha wanna see a performer do: ". . . Um, excuse me. Mister sound man? Mister sound man? Mister, um. I'm playing for a paying audience. Jeez. Can you hear me? (He's looking right at me...) Why isn't he responding? Hello?"

[@JessDurden]

mR. sWANS I think you didnt close the bottle you were drinking and spilt it on your gear at 2:08

[@OmgCemen]

+JessDurden it was closed

[@Sighbot]

mR. sWaN.

[@FureonNectarmoon]

Hey there, mR. sWAN, Now I swim in your lake.

[@Olliebond1]

this reminds me of anton newcome abit

[@soundsofsoundsof]

I came for the solo performance of oxygen