Girlbandgeek Blog

Cat Power at the Fox Theater

This is my review of Cat Power at the Fox Theater in Oakland. The date of the show was November 20, 2018. My cousin Terry joined me this evening.

The support act was Arsun. About halfway through the set, the singer spelled it out for us “A-R-S-U-N.” Terry commented to me, maybe when you pick your band name, go for something that you don’t have to spell, LOL. Anyway, enough with the snark. Arsun were a 3-piece band from NYC. Lead singer was vaguely Tom Petty looking dude with long dirty blond hair and a slightly haunted expression. The bassist and lead guitar player had short dark hair. Lead guitar player was quite tall and handsome. They had a good sound, and I thought the vocalist had a good voice, and put some emotion into his singing. Ultimately Terry and I both felt that their song-writing did not live up to their promise. The songs were slow, and kind of dark, with lots of references to drug use, failed romances and the like. But I felt there were a lot of obvious and slightly cringeworthy lines/rhymes, and they often fell back on the device of repeating a line over and over again with increasing fervor. But they were sincere, and the audience gave them a warm reception.

Terry and I talked for about 30 minutes while we waited for Cat Power to come on. We had ideal viewing spots at the rail nearest to the stage. So we were slightly elevated and had a clear view, while still being quite close. I studied the great gilt god figures that loomed on either side of the stage. I imagined a fantasy movie scenario in which the two statues somehow became animated and broke free from their frozen state. The audience would run screaming as they lumbered about, picking up humans like toys and crushing them …

The band took the stage, lights came down, and Chan appeared. She wore a long black velvet sort of tunic. This was my second Cat Power show, the first being a solo date at the Rio Theater in Santa Cruz about a year and a half ago. This was definitely another side of Cat Power from the Rio show. At the Rio Chan performed solo, accompanying herself on piano or guitar, and the songs were dark, moody, and slow as valium. Tonight we had Chan fronting a band (drums, guitar, bass/keys) and the feel was more upbeat and rocked out. She held a stick of incense which could be seen glowing as she moved her hands. I was really in love with how she moved. It was a strange tension between graceful and awkward. But mostly graceful.

I forgot my notebook, and honestly it was freeing just to enjoy the concert, and not try to write down key points. She opened with something from Moon Pix that I recognized, which was bonus. I recognized a couple songs from Moon Pix and Sun, which are the two I know pretty well, and then several from the new album The Wanderer which I have had for a couple weeks and am liking a lot. A high point was Cross Bones Style from Moon Pix.

The band was killer, very tight yet supple musically. Overall the show was surprisingly rocking. A lot of the numbers were really pumped up compared to the studio versions, but in a very satisfying way. Marshall used the whole stage as she performed, swaying her hips and moving her arms expressively – Earth Mother, I thought. And of course Chan’s voice, smoky, expressive with a quality that cuts to the bone, is what stayed with me most. Folks, if you get a chance to see Cat Power, don’t pass it up. For my money, this was definitely one of the most memorable shows of 2018.

Welcome to another episode of Girlbandgeek blog in which I attempt to review a show which I saw over a month ago. But I really want to review it, because I have many feels about this show.

Not the same show, but similar!

On this night I had some misadventures involving a random guy I met near the club. I was feeling expansive, and he was friendly, so I offered him my extra ticket. I was thinking about previous shows where I had tried to sell an extra ticket unsuccessfully, and I was thinking why not do a nice gesture since this fellow apparently had nothing better to do. Well, turned out to be a mistake, but not ultimately a calamitous one. He actually got himself kicked out of the club before the show started, after he got up on the stage and started mumbling something he said was a prayer. Anyway, I swear I’m going to stop being so friendly to random guys I meet. It seems like usually a scam, or somebody who is very unlikely to share your worldview on almost anything.

The opening act was Jenny O, about whom I know nothing. I was glad the show was starting, and grateful for the darkness, the sounds, and the fact that my tedious companion David had been booted from the club.

I was initially pretty into Jenny. The edible I popped earlier had kicked in and I was pretty high. It was just Jenny solo but her guitar sounded nice and full. The Swedish American hall is a fairly spartan venue, with polished wood floors and white walls, but it’s small, and the acoustics are decent. Her voice is reedy, soulful and possesses a timbre which seems to shift from song to song. Lots of echo in the voice. Jenny has a soulful quality, and reminds me a little of Kristin Hersh. The crowd is a little small but appreciative. However, about four songs in to her set and Jenny is starting to grate on me. This night is cursed. My new neighbors are talking through the show. Jenny is maybe a little simplistic for my taste. Ultimately, the sound was kind of muddy. She is talking to us, but I can’t make it out. She’s talented, and has a vulnerable quality, which made me root for her. It was good, but not great.

Gentle readers, nothing prepared me for Margaret Glaspy’s performance. In all the songs I’ve listened to, and videos I’ve watched, Margaret and her guitar seem inseparable. She’s a true guitar goddess, from a bluegrass family, she started on fiddle or banjo as a girl, maybe, and has been performing since she was a child. Anyway, her guitar playing is just so gutsy and inventive, I was anticipating an evening of getting blown away by her fretboard mastery. But Glaspy had something completely different in mind, which in a way was even more amazing because she pulled off a show that was 90% about her singing, and consisted mostly of covers (most of which I didn’t even know). She did not even pick up her guitar until about song 11, and then only played about 4 songs on it.

She came out in a black sheer cocktail dress that was kind of sparkly. There was one accompanist, Tyler Chester, who played keyboards, bass, and some kind of possibly electronic percussion.

Although I was really looking forward to listen to her rip out a bunch of songs on the six string, this show really worked for me, and boosted my estimation of Glaspy’s talent. It’s like ‘you already know I’m an amazing guitar player and songwriter, but tonight I’m going to just sing you a bunch of covers and blow you away with just my voice and emotional range.’ And I was blown away.

She opened with Anthony from Emotions and Math – just vocals and keyboards and brilliant. This was one of only 4 of her own compositions, by my counting. A few songs in she laughed and says something about the show being ‘kind of a juke box’. I have done my best at identifying the songs, but they were mostly new to me, so it’s hit or miss. Some of the instrumentation was down-right electronic, and vaguely Björk-like. There are some drum machines, and her voice is processed electronically on some numbers. As I said, she doesn’t pull out her guitar until song 11. Her signature songs like Emotions & Math and Love Like This turn out to be equally great without her bluesy riffs, only her voice and Chester’s keyboards to carry them. The last song of the set is Neil Young’s Harvest Moon and it’s fucking brilliant.

• Anthony
• Hope She’ll be Happier (Bill Withers Cover)
• Love Like This
• Mythological Beauty (Big Thief Cover)
• Lost Until I’m Found (Perry Nunn Cover)
• Version of Me (Kimbra Cover)
• I’m Glad You’re Mine (Al Green Cover)
• Emotions and Math
• ? (Lauryn Hill Cover)
• ? (Sarah Siskind Cover)
• All I Wanna Do Is Fall In Love (? possibly Robyn Hitchcock cover)
• something about “Angry Again”
• Somebody to Anybody
• I Can’t Make You Love Me (Bonnie Raitt cover)
• Harvest Moon (Neil Young cover)
• [encore]
• another cover, possibly Greg Flannery

That was definitely a show for the ages. The video above is not from that show, but it has the same feel (and same outfit). Enjoy!

Snail Mail at Starline Social Club

The Rock and Roll show is sacred space. All is sacred.

I apologize, dear readers, for the large gaps in my scintillating concert reviews, as well as my inability to get my thoughts down on paper while the memory of the show is still fresh. Nevertheless, I am committed to writing a review of every show I attend. Perhaps it can be made a kind of virtue, I mean, I remember concerts that I saw years and decades ago – not in detail to be sure – but I remember the impact the performance had on me.

I was really excited about seeing Snail Mail, to be sure. I feel a little sheepish about jumping on the bandwagon of the NYT and everybody gushing over this HS senior with her wise-beyond-her-years persona and her virtuoso guitar-playing. But holy fuck Lindsey Jordan is super talented and intelligent, and who doesn’t want to see this prodigy in the early phase of what will hopefully be a long and fruitful career?

First band was Club Night from Oakland. They were a noisy prog rock outfit. Their music was intense and at times unsettling, but I thought they were talented and played with conviction. My notes ‘intense … King Crimson-esque … tapping … many notes.’ The lead guitar player was quite talented, and although they weren’t exactly my cup of tea I appreciated them.

Next up were folk rockers Bonny Doon. (The members have not actually been to Bonny Doon, which is near where I live in the Santa Cruz Mountains.) The members got ready to play their set – drums, and two guitar players. A short blond woman stepped onto the stage and grinned at the audience – the bass player. I thought to myself ‘she looks a lot like Lindsey Jordan’ but I thought it was just a coincidence. However, it became obvious after the fact that Lindsey Jordan was in fact filling in on bass and backup vox with Bonny Doon, which was cool. Everybody had French braids (except the drummer), which was also cool.

Alex and I both like Bonny Doon’s set. They had a kind of country rock, Americana sound – a sort of comfortable, breezy and strummy feel that was easy to relate to. They had a warm stage presence and it was a totally enjoyable set.

And then it was time for Snail Mail. I had been looking forward to this show for a long time, and Snail Mail did not disappoint. Lindsey returned to the stage having traded in the bass in for her usual Jaguar (?) 6-string. She had a confident and kind of brash presence – I guess she must be used to performing for people who are older than her. There was a noisy intro which segued into Heat Wave off her new album Lush and the set was underway.

I guess people have been talking about her singing, and for good reason. I mean, Lindsey’s guitar-playing is kind of the gateway drug with Snail Mail, but Lindsey writes great songs, and she sings them with 110% conviction. There a very raw quality in her voice, like it’s beaming right from her soul. And you can understanding every fucking word which is bonus. 

The only qualm I have about Snail Mail is that they don’t really seem like a band. Lindsey is very clear that Snail Mail is her project. The other musicians seem very much the side men. Although they were all excellent musicians the drummer is the only one that seems to have any chemistry with Jordan. I guess maybe that’s just what works best for her, but I fantasize about a future version where Lindsey finds true collaborators.

But what the fuck, Jordan is on fire and it’s a joy to watch her perform! I love her guitar playing – there’s a really assertive quality about – jangly, ringing, and totally inventive. The songs are interesting, too. There were barn burners like Pristine and Static buzz, along with hauntingly pretty numbers like Let’s Find an Out. Before the encore she played two solo numbers that were super pretty.
Anyway, the set list I captured was:

• Intro
• Heat Wave
• Dirt
• Slug
• “I’m not yours” “wasted”
• Thinning
• Let’s Find an Out
• Full Control
• Pristine
• idk “someone like you”
• Anytime (solo)
• Cover song from Juno (solo)
• Static Buzz [encore] 

Club Night at Starline Social Club

Bonny Doon at Starline Social Club