Steely Dan's Two Against Nature

Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, in addition to whatever crack musicians they had hired on at any given time--i.e., Steely Dan--toured as a band from 1972-'74 and then stopped, claiming that they could just not achieve the perfect studio sound they were renowned for in concert halls at that time. What followed was six more years' worth of astounding studio LPs, and then nothing Danwise until 1993, when, miracle of miracles, the Dan began touring again! In 2000, Steely Dan released its first studio album in 20 years (!), "Two Against Nature," and this complementary DVD, recorded live at NYC's Sony Music Stages before a select audience. The event finds the band in excellent form, dishing out 14 songs and touching on every album in its glorious career, with the exception of the very first, "Can't Buy a Thrill"; five songs from the then-new album are featured too, naturally. The DVD looks just great, and features extremely fluid camera work of the 13-piece band; indeed, the cameras always seem to be pointed just where you want them to be. Highlights of this 100-minute set are "Green Earrings," with a jazzy piano interlude from Fagen; second guitarist Jon Herrington's dazzling work on "Black Friday," "Kid Charlemagne" and "Pretzel Logic"; Chris Potter's excellent sax solo on "Janie Runaway"; the remarkable blowing from the entire four-piece horn section on "Gaslighting Abbie"; the supersmooth deep grooves of "Babylon Sisters" and "Jack of Speed"; the extended vocal coda on "Cousin Dupree"; and the inclusion of that gorgeous rarity "Bad Sneakers." Interspersed with amusing comments from the fans and interview segments of the band, this disc really is a must for all fans of the Dan of Steel. My only beef: No "Bodhisattva"?!?!?!

Steely Dan perform live before a small audience in an intimate setting. They perform songs from their latest album "Two Against Nature" and also some of their greatest hits such as "FM" and "Peg". If you are a Steely Dan fan like me, you will not want to miss seeing this DVD.

Unfortunately at present, this DVD is only available in Australia, but hopefully soon it will also be released internationally.

10/10

Lords of the freaks they are. Their music is superb, and the twisted humor they manage is not far behind, which also is shown in here. 2vsN is one of the finest music document this pair could've release. It's Steely Dan magnificent sound plus vision; what else can anyone ask for? They rule.

There's no doubt about it; if you're reading this, that can only means that you're as a die-hard fan of their music as anybody whom has listened to them 'cause it's all so natural. They have one of the most loyal group of people supporting an art made under the moniker of Steely Dan (beside the Deadheads, of course). Once you've heard'em, you can't fight the spell they put on you through music. A must for any fan. This DVD includes songs like Kid Charlemagne, FM, Jack of speed, Peg, Gaslighting Abbie, Green earrings, Bad sneakers, Janie runaway and so on. This edition has no special features but, who cares? It's all about music, and this couple sure knows how to create it in order to reach the sky; and take us with them up with every chord, with every line Fagen sings and every string Becker hits.

A laboratory band with two mad rock scientists in front and a jazzy background. Fagen and Becker are masters of art. They seduce your ears like anyone else can or ever could, and now they do the same with your sight. Go buy it!

For Steely Dan fans, this video is a must. The performances and sound are absolutely wonderful. No complaints there. But the video direction and editing are less than great. Admittedly, SD is not the most visually dynamic band on stage, and I imagine it was difficult to try to breathe life into a bunch of guys basically standing (or sitting) there. But the shots used in this video, which I'm sure someone thought were very artistic, are more often annoying. Out of focus shots, extreme off-center shots, shaky-cam shots, all edited together very sloppily make for a distracting experience. Rarely does the camera give us a close up on a soloing player -- I want to watch that player play! Instead we cut to a slightly fuzzy shot of the drummer on a 15-degree angle stuck down in the lower left corner of the frame (or something to that effect). They should have gone with a more conventional style on this video.

I know I've spent a lot of words complaining about this point, which might make it sound like I didn't enjoy the video. The truth is that it's very worth watching, the weakness of the visuals aside. It's still a great band and a great performance, and there are brief vignettes between songs that I found very entertaining. If you dig the Dan, you must check out this vid. Try not to be too disappointed with the camera/editing work; if it gets irritating just close your eyes -- you won't be missing much anyway.