Glen Hansard - De Duif - Amsterdam - 24 July 2012

This day marketh the beginning of ye brand spanking new festival which shall henceforth be known as 'The Glened'.

The Glened is a celebration running over the course of ten days and nine nights in which my two favourite troubadours - Glen and Ed the Ved ('ETV' aka Eddie Vedder) - delight crowds across Europe with their acoustic magnificence.

I can claim credit for the creation of the concept of 'The Glened' but really it's just some tongue in cheek fun to get people excited and involved in this short tour. Very limited edition t- shirts and badges were available and a heap of people brought their enthusiasm and love of music along to the benefit of everyone!!!

This is the first time that Glen and ETV have toured together in Europe and given my experience at the US shows last year I am pretty darn excited because I know just how good these two are together.

Everything kicks off in Amsterdam with a solo show that Glen has slotted in before Ed's first scheduled show. I arrive in the late afternoon to a gorgeous day of sunshine where bodies are strewn across canals and the mood is buoyant.

Tonight's show is at De Duif and I am eagerly awaiting my entry into the venue as I am told by my Dutchies (read 'my good Dutch mates') that it is an acoustic dream. There are plenty of people clad in Frames and Swell Season t-shirts outside for the doors opening - which is a sign of the esteem which Glen has built up in the Netherlands over many years.

I am not disappointed with the venue - it's stunning and intimate and absolutely perfect for the kind of show Glen excels at putting on.

The opener tonight is Glen's mate from Dublin - Ollie Cole. Ollie actually opened for Glen last year at his Bitterzoet show and he intimates that he is delighted to be back sharing in the sunshine (which is a first for him in Amsterdam!). Ollie mixes his set up with both old and new songs. The audience happily participate as 'wolves' for Ollie's song Howl and the relaxed and respectful feel to proceedings bodes well for a terrific night with Glen.

Ollie aptly ends his set with a song which I think should be the English summer anthem - When Will We Ever See the Sun? Great stuff!

Glen takes to the stage only fifteen or so minutes after Ollie. The church is packed - there are people sitting in chairs, on the floor, on benches - essentially anything that is around. Glen decides first to head to the piano and has to ask two audience members to 'borrow' the piano seat they are sitting on so he can play! As always, Glen is amongst everyone early on and it's just how we like it.

Glen doesn't often display his chops on the piano (I suppose it is hard to detach him from The Horse!), but this track from Rhythm and Repose (R & R) is a fine example of the diverse way Glen can go about creating a song. It's soulful and not overly complicated by other instruments or parts. There's a certain sense of equality between performer and audience when Glen is in such close proximity - It's one of those innate qualities that Glen seems to exude effortlessly.

Glen then moves on to another instrument that he has previously not given much time to - the ukelele. Pennies in the Fountain apparently 'fell' out of the uke the day he bought it (in response to wanting to 'fit in' with ETV's Ukelele Songs tour last year). It's a gorgeous tune which missed out on a spot on R & R but remains in Glen's live setlist. I'm not exactly sure what kind of sacrifices Glen is making to his muse in order to allow such songs to 'fall out' of his instruments but whatever he is doing, it's working. Let's just hope that Glen hasn't been down to the crossroads!!

Glen gets his loop on next with Talkin With the Wolves - add in some recorded beats on guitar, some screaming into the Horse's pick-up and a tune about some people who rely a little too much on their tarots/omens/lucky 8 balls and you've got yourself a right buzzin number!

Next I get to hear one I haven't heard before - Friend/Enemy. Glen introduces it as one he never finished - but it sounds pretty near finished in terms of its intent to me! I later find out that it's an oldie that has been kicking around in the ether for a while.

Love Don't Leave Me Waiting (LDLMW) brings with it a great story. Apparently Glen found himself in Amsterdam with a righteous hangover and a wish to see Jimmy Cliff after seeing his gig poster outside a venue he walked past. A dubious and crafty tout talked Glen into a €50 ticket to this 'sold out' show only for Glen to find out after entering that not only was the show not sold out, but Jimmy Cliff was not even performing! Instead Glen was treated to reggae band, Morgan Heritage (who were according to Glen worth the €50!). LDLMW is later dedicated to both reggae artists and we are treated to a tag of Many Rivers To Cross in their honour.

A further tag of Marvin Gaye's Sexual Healing in Low Rising brings out the Irish Catholic guilt in Glen, and he comments that non- Catholic churches seem to be a lot more open to gigs such as his within their walls - his explanation for this is that the Catholic church has only one singer - being JC - and they are not generally amenable to others providing musical entertainment in a sacred space. I am not of any denomination but I have to say I find myself thinking about how music is my religion more than once throughout this show.

Swell Season number Feeling the Pull is next, followed by my stand- out track from R & R - Bird of Sorrow. As on other occasions, I find myself in tears during this song. I'm pretty sure everyone can relate to the song's intent and purpose on some level even if you aren't one of the three subjects of the songs - which Glen says are: Ireland, someone close to him (his Ma) and himself (as all songs are by the person who wrote them). I cannot see the effect of this song waning for me anytime soon.

Typically gregarious, Glen then shares his bottle of wine with some lucky audience members at the front. Given the location, he is quickly asked whether he has any bread to dish out and Glen jokes that he doesn't, but he promises that he's made the said wine into an endless bottle.

The next tune is not in Glen's regular setlist, but given our location it is not a surprise. Mic Christopher is always on Glen's mind whenever he is in the Netherlands, and there's no better tribute than to pull out one of Mic's own tunes about friendship. 'Friends' by The Mary Janes is from their album Sham which I was put on to by a dear Frames mate last year. It's a cracker of a record and I encourage anyone who hasn't checked it out to head straight to Itunes for a download. It's a great addition to any Irish music collection you have.

We are dealt a trio of Glen 'classics' next - Finally, Leave and Astral Weeks. The latter seemingly now being part of Glen's DNA. The 'Smile' tag delights a good number of Pearl Jam fans in the crowd (myself included). I think seeing Glen perform that song with the band at PJ20 last year is one of my all time musical highlights.

After Glen's 'Beware Celebrity' uke ditty, Come Away to the Water, he asks after the people sitting on the floor in De Duif. As always, he is concerned that people are comfortable and he invites those on the concrete floor to come and sit on the step in front of the stage for a change. A number of people take Glen up on his offer and I think that their church-hardened butts thank him for it!

An invitation is then extended to the whole audience to provide backing vocals for Backbroke. Glen wants us to sound like a 'Russian choir standing on a cloud over a battlefield' - it's not a picture I've ever had in my mind but hey let's give it a go!

When your Mind's Made Up and Say It To Me Now/Gold (off mic) round out the main set. As he often does Glen brings out his opener (Ollie) for a tune to kick off the encore. Glen adds guitar and backing vocal to 'Magnolia' penned by Ollie for his fiancé Claire - who is briefly brought out and introduced to us.

Another first for me tonight is hearing Glen's cover of the Pixies' tune Cactus. This has been on my wish list for a while and although it's been played by Glen often I have always managed to miss it. Favourite lyric check:

"I miss your soup and I miss your bread
And a letter in your writing doesn't mean you're not dead"

A Levon moment is next. Glen seems to have reservations about attempting 'The Night They Drive Old Dixie Down' by himself, but the audience helps out and it sounds good. The penultimate tune for the night is the lynchpin of R & R - The Song of Good Hope. Glen describes this song as having come to him like a visitation, and I refer to my previous comments regarding muse sacrifices in its regard. This arrow of intent is truly moving and I know my good friend (and Glened collaborator) Dan is beside himself to hear it. As I am sure most music junkies will agree, a lot of the time it takes seeing the effect of a song on another person to comprehend just how good it is.

So, here I am thinking that the night just can't get any better - how wrong I am! The final song of the evening is a cover of Bruce Springsteen's Drive All Night. Glen recalls being in awe of the Boss at his recent Dublin show, and acknowledges the high watermark left by him in terms of live performance. Part way through the song Glen suggests that it could really do with some piano, and he asks if there is anyone in the audience who could help him out. Chris from Germany puts his hand up, sits down at the piano, confirms the chord structure with Glen and then proceeds to absolutely nail the accompaniment - it's an amazing turn of events and something that could only happen as a result of Glen's absolute benevolence as a performer. A friend of Glen's in attendance (Ross) is also called upon to fire up the church organ upstairs and soon we have a complete track of instruments alongside Glen's stirring rendition of this Bruce classic - I have to pinch myself to confirm that I am actually witnessing this! This is what intimate, live performances should be all about - my awe now matches that of Glen's to Bruce.

Drive All Night melds into Parting Glass and we finally all raise our glasses in thanks for a mind-blowing, face-melting, heart string - tugging show.

Groetjes Glen!

Setlist: 
Ollie Cole
Helium Heart
Howl
Like a Gull
Too Beat
Sweet Songs (new)
When Will We Ever See the Sun?

Glen Hansard
The Storm, It's Coming
Pennies in the Fountain
Talking With the Wolves
Friend/Enemy
Love Don't Leave Me Waiting - Many Rivers to Cross (Jimmy Cliff)
Low Rising - Sexual Healing (Marvin Gaye)
Felling the Pull
Bird of Sorrow
Friends (The Mary Janes)
Finally
Leave
Astral Weeks(Van Morrison) - Smile (Pearl Jam)
Come Away to the Water
Backbroke
When Your Mind's Made Up
Say it To Me No/ Gold (Interference)
Magnolia (All of the Time) (with Ollie Cole)
Cactus (The Pixies)
The NIght They Drove Old Dixie Down (The Band)
Song of Good Hope
Drive All Night (Bruce Springsteen) - The Parting Glass (Traditional)

Further info available from Order in the Sound here:
http://www.orderinthesound.com/24-july-2012-amsterdam-nl-de-duif-church

More pics here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157630804800002/

Garbage - Troxy - 9 May 2012

Now this is a result - a gig over my side of town! The Troxy is an old art deco- styled venue which to be fair is probably more suited to lounge acts or vaudeville shows but which has recently been host to some pretty amazing indie rock artists - such as Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, PJ Harvey and Cake. Tonight the 2,600 capacity venue is putting up the newly reformed Garbage.


I was actually at the 'very last' Garbage show at Brixton Academy years ago and it was an amazing performance. I cannot, however, believe that took place over 7 years ago! Surely not? Where does the time go? And more importantly how old am I - gah!


I first saw Garbage in the origins of their hey day co-headlining with Alanis Morrisette in Canberra (October '99) of all places. I distinctly remember Shirley tearing up the stage and making the night of numerous hapless boyfriends (who had been dragged along to the show by their girlfriends!) by strutting around the front of the stage with her very short skirt and white undies - they were actually very good that night and Alanis had to significantly up the ante to match it.


Garbage, time, were mainly about very slick pop rock songs and some serious Scottish attitude (care of their iconic leading lady). I am keen to see whether they still have the ability to sliver up the goods. I am also somewhat concerned about the fact that yet another band from my own hey day has come out of retirement - where is the new guard? In a perfect music world there would be no room for those who voluntarily left the stage many years ago. Perhaps the fact that bands like Garbage, Blur, Soundgarden and The Stone Roses (amongst others) are able to successfully tour again says something about the dire state of a music industry overrun by artists created by Simon Cowell - or maybe it just indicates that I am getting overly critical in my old age!


At least Garbage are not simply resting on their old laurels - there is an album full of new material on its way and I assume that we going to get a taste of some of the new tracks tonight.


Following a DJ opener (who really did remind us how old we were by playing 'classics' like L7 and The Damned) , the band took the stage just after 9pm. The crowd are full of people around my age in various shapes and forms and lots of goth looking girls with pink, blue and purple died hair - go the youngins!


The supervixen herself stepped straight up and into the track of the same name from Garbage's debut album (yeah that pink one!). She was decked out appropriately in red and black hot pants and heels and proceeded to throw herself around the stage in her infamous 'circling the prey' manner.

Unfortunately the sound system at the Troxy wasn't able to keep up with the band's intent and the result was a really muddy mix where Shirley's vocals could barely be heard - which was somewhat concerning given that I was standing in the front row. I've been at the Troxy a number of times and not experienced muddiness of this level before so I can only think that it's the set up that is creating the problem. It does improve over the course of the set but it's still a little off.


By the time we get to Queer we are able to hear the vocals a little better. The band sound good and the Shirley swagger is in effect - although it is slightly diminished by the minion who appears to relieve Shirley of her heels in exchange for flat boots - fair play!


Stupid Girl a few tracks later gets the crowd going and this is shortly followed by my personal highlight of the night being the triple whammy of #1 Crush (with awesome Madonna Erotica intro), Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go) and excellent new track Blood For Poppies. Really they sound like the 7 year break was only 7 weeks - which bodes pretty well for their upcoming tour.

Shirley takes the opportunity to thank the crowd, their manager and their families (most of whom are here tonight) for their love and support and there is a collective feeling of nostalgia which I think is felt by most in attendance - ahhh the 90s - those were the days!


We then move into full nostalgia mode with Milk and I Think I'm Paranoid. It's good to see that there is still some venom in these tunes - especially given that some of them are over 17 years old!


Man on a Wire and Bad Boyfriend from (album) keep the energy high and we then find ourselves with two further old friends to end out the main set - Only Happy When It Rains (which starts out low key and almost acoustically) and Push It.


I am still yet to hear probably my favourite Garbage tune (Vow) but I have high hopes for the encore - although I am wondering what else they are going to play given that most of the biggest Garbage hits have already been dealt with.

I have to say I am pretty surprised to see them pull out new track Automatic Systematic Habit and The Trick is to Keep Breathing as the first two songs of the encore. It's not exactly keeping in line with the high energy which they had created but it's certainly different and enough to sort the men from the boys in terms of Garbage fans.


We are suddenly at the end of the night and I am rewarded with my favourite track - Vow. This is the song that started it all off in 1995 and is a fitting finale for this 'comeback' show. We even get a tidy sample of Patti Smith's Because the Night at the end before Shirley runs off stage and leaves the boys to finish things up.


It's a fairly satisfying night for us old Garbage fans. It will be interesting to see whether they can garner some interest with this latest album amongst the new brigade.


More photos:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629670377450/

Dan Mangan - Bush Hall - 3 May 2012

So I am back at the intimate Bush Hall in Shepherd's Bush. I had a pretty great night here in February so the precedent has been set. Tonight it is Canadian indie singer-songwriter Dan Mangan.


I was first put on to Mr Mangan last year by one of my fellow music-loving mates, Leonie. She's one of my Dutchies and has excellent taste in music so I was more than open to her suggestion. The result was the fairly heavy rotation of Dan's 2009 album Nice, Nice, Very Nice 'NNVN' (yep it's a Kurt Vonnegut reference). It's a fun album chock full of skilfully writtenl songs about a myriad of different subjects such as robot love, pining for your home whilst on tour and how humans fit into this thing we call life. I have to say I had a great response to it do I was keen to see what Dan was going to offer up live.


I made it to the venue in time to see the last couple of songs by support group Zeus. They are a Toronto based unit so not physical comrades of Dan's (who is from Vancouver). They make plenty of noise and have a real 70s feel to them. It's not particularly ringing my bell but they get a great response from the crowd.


Dan is on at 9.30pm. He has a full band with him - drums, bass, guitar and even trumpet - and they start without ceremony. Well I say start, but to be absolutely honest it's hard to tell whether they are trying to set an ambient mood or tuning their instruments - we soon work out that it is the former and that they are in fact segueing into About as Helpful as You Can Get Without Being Any Help from his latest album Oh Fortune.


This is not the acoustic Dan Mangan I was anticipating, but I enjoy the fact that he is immediately stepping outside my expectations and pushing the audience beyond it's comfort zone. This is what a true artist should do in my opinion.


It takes the band the first couple of tunes to get into the swing of things - the songs from Oh Fortune are not as immediately accessible as those on NNVN but it's good to know that Dan is stepping outside the well delineated 'folk-rock' mould. It's a very big sound that they are bringing to the stage and I'm finding that the sound mix is not particularly great - as Thom Yorke would say it's 'buzzing like a fridge' at the back of the room where I am standing but to be fair that's not unusual in this box of a room.

The crowd also warm up sufficiently to get into NNVN track Sold. Catchy little number that one - 'it hurts, it kills, it screams' - yep sounds like a normal day at work for me! I always wonder whether the musicians I see realise that they are living the dream whilst us mere unmusical plebs deal with the rat race - these guys are at least having a good time.


Dan is active all over the stage, even dropping back to his guitar player's mic at times to do his own backing vocals (with some effect assistance).


The next highlight for me is Basket - which Dan says is a song really about birth - it's more a song about re-birth at various stages of life to me but let's not be pedantic about these things! This song showcases Dan's songwriting talents - the lyrics are incredibly visual and compassionate at the same time:


"We are old
And our son took the dog away
And fair enough, guess we're tired all the time
All the time
And you know dogs they need ample time outside"


This is closely followed by an all in singalong to one of Dan's most well-known tunes - Robots. I love this track and the audience are well up for some backing vocal duties.


Somehow we've managed to wizz through the set and an hour and bit bin we are already heading towards the 11pm curfew time and Dan notes that the standard action would be for them to leave the stage and come back on however its his view that the best use of their time is to ditch the encore break and just play to the curfew- I am down with that!

We are back into some more NNVN territory with Fair Verona where Dan is cut and pasting the starts to his heart - the boy has got some charisma and he's working it overtime at the moment.


He then invites the members of Zeus back on to the stage for a rendition of Elliott Smith's Waltz #2. It's a cool cover and the stage is suddenly very full of Canadians tearing it up.


Dan saves the best for last - he declares that he is coming on down into the crowd to get amongst it and then gives us some specific backing vocal duties - there's no words, it's just a melody which he is going to sing over and off he goes into So Much For Everyone. It sounds fabulous and the audience collectively decide to really bring it. I live for this shit at gigs - it's entirely engaging and this last five minutes is worth the ticket price alone.


Dan has certainly showcased his talents tonight and I'm glad to have had an opportunity to see him at such close quarters.


I've had myself another night of musical goodness at Bush Hall for a tenner - long may this trend continue!


More pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629602394848/

Florence + The Machine @ Alexandra Palace - 9 March 2012

As I trek out to Wood Green I try to recall that last time I was at Alexandra Palace (affectionately known as Ally Pally) for a gig - it was almost 5 years ago when I went to see Arcade Fire touring their second album (Neon Bible). The venue is not bad at all - the walk up the hill is, however, a pain in the ass.


I arrive with my gig buddy at the start of the set by second opening band The Horrors. I know little about them other than they are from Southend-On-Sea - as far as I am concerned they get points just for that fact because I have been to Southend-On-Sea and there is nuthin there!


They are what I would describe as an up-to-date 80s techno band trying to pull off a 'Joy Division' type attitude. The lead singer is certainly doing his best Ian Curtis impression. It's a fairly upbeat set until the last song which is a real downer - so much for warming up the crowd!


Florence comes on stage around 9.15pm. The stage is impressively 'art-deco-ed' out with the set itself doubling as a screen. It looks good and fits right in with the Ceremonials aesthetics.

Our flame-haired songstress is also suitably decked out in an all black, guided body suit with a huge black and white zebra striped cape - it's quite an entrance. Add to that the huge amount of people on the stage - band, choir and orchestra - and you've got yourself a very expensive little touring group.

The night begins with Ceremonials track Only for a Night. The majority of the crowd is young and receptive and they seem to get going with the next track - What the Water Gave Me - which has an exceptional live sound. There is no doubt that Florence Welch has decent set of lungs on her - her voice is very strong and the music matches it. The only thing which she seems to lack is the matching stage persona. When she first speaks to the crowd her voice is tentative and nervous and she admits that she is suffering from the jitters and is somewhat lost for words. This is a little surprising given that she has sold out three nights at Ally Pally and has shifted a decent number of units of her album - she clearly has the support of her fans and cannot be nervous about that. This coquettish banter is endearing to begin with but several giddy laughs and nonsensical comments later and it is starting to detract from the very strong stage presence that her voice and her music originally set up. Perhaps she needs to take a leaf out of PJ Harvey's book and ditch the stage banter entirely and let the music do the talking.

The highlights of the set are the songs that soar - Shake It Out, Dog Days Are Over and Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) (where Florence invites all the ladies in the audience to jump up on the shoulders of their men or mates). There's obviously not a lot of material for Florence to work with so the gig runs just over 90 minutes.

The punters are happy and its a good performance but not a great one. I am hopeful that Florence's onstage confidence with improve to the level of her voice and music - I suppose that we'll find out the next time.


We then start the long trek down the hill to the tube station - my biggest tip: skip the buses and walk.


More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629562884925/


Set list:

1. Only If For A Night 
2. What the Water Gave Me 
3. Cosmic Love 
4. Between Two Lungs 
5. Shake It Out 
6. Dog Days Are Over 
7. Breaking Down 
8. Lover To Lover 
9. Heartlines 
10. Leave My Body 
11. Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) 
12. All This and Heaven Too 
13. Spectrum 
14. No Light, No Light 
15. Encore:
15. You've Got the Love 
    (The Source cover)
16. Never Let Me Go 

Ani Di Franco @ Union Chapel - 10 & 11 January 2012

So I have decided to blog my way though my gigs of 2012, This is more for my own benefit than anything else - I'm using it as part of a new exercise regime which includes both my body and my mind.


My first gigs of 2012 occur a mere one day after my arrival back into the UK from Australia. I am jetlagging like a bitch but nothing is going to stop me from heading to my favourite London venue, the Union Chapel ('the UC'), for two nights of acoustic greatness from one of my high musical priestesses - Ani DiFranco.


Put simply, this chick rocks. Not only is she an amazing songwriter and guitar player, she also owns and runs her own record label, Righteous Babe Records, making her (as she says in her own words) the 'Queen of her own compost heap'.


Ani is flying solo on this visit to the UK without her usual touring partners in crime, Todd Sickafoose and Allison Miller. One gal and a guitar - sounds just about perfect to me.


Now I'm no expert, but in my humble opinion the acoustics in the UC are really second to none in London. I defy even the Royal Albert Hall to produce better sound. What I love about the UC other than the sound is its intimacy - it is designed for up close and personal shows and there is almost an unspoken requirement that you be good enough as a performer to deliver a high quality performance because if you make a mistake there is nowhere to hide. Everyone can hear everything  in this room - from a performer's lost chord or flubbed lyric to an audience member dropping their cup of tea (another hugely endearing part of a UC gig). This thing is, if you are good enough, the UC can take you and your audience to a higher plain and damn it I was ready to get high!


Both nights begin with English singer-songwriter Ruth Theodore opening up proceedings. She is a barefoot guitarist with a pixie look and Juliana Hatfield-like voice. Her tunes are lengthy poems which, whilst not up my alley, are well received by the Ani faithful.


Night 1 begins with Ani's anthemic 'Little Plastic Castles' which sufficiently rouses the crowd from their cold pews. She then proceeds  with a casual stroll into the her past catalog pulling out gems like 'As Is, 'Swan Dive' and 'Rain Check'. These tracks are interspersed with more recent tracks (such as 'Marrow') and tracks from her new album 'Which Side Are you On?'. The new album isn't officially released until next week but as Ani is her own CEO and doesn't give a hairy rat's ass about the 'charts', the album is made available to those attending these shows and I of course nabbed myself a copy to maintain my continued support of this gifted, independent artist.

The main set contained a good seven tracks form the new album including title track 'Which Side Are You On?' (an updated protest song), 'Albacore' (a wedding song for Ani's bethrothed), 'J', 'Lifeboat', 'Unworry', 'If Yr Not' and 'Mariachi'.


As usual Ani's straightforward and to the point lyrics pack a punch and win over the audience - my personal favourite being:


"If Yr Not, If Yr Not, If Yr Not getting happier as you grow older then yr fuckin up"


- good point, well made.


A highlight of NIght 1 comes with Ani asking the audience for comments or suggestions - cue many people screaming out various song titles while Ani attempts to translate. One request from the balcony in particular catches Ani's attention on the basis  that she cannot make out what is being requested at all. It is an old gem - 'Overlap'. Ani says she would need help to attempt it and the confident audience member offers assistance and ends up providing the same on stage via both guitar and vocal - it's a spontaneous, fun moment AND most importantly it sounds good.

Another bright spot for me was Ani's cover of Woody Guthrie's song 'Do Re Mi'. It is the mark of a good song to sound so good and fresh 50 years after it was written.


Night 1 ends with two Ani classics - 'Gravel' and one of my all time favourites '32 Flavors' - beat these opening lyrics:


"Squint your eyes and look closer
I'm not between you and your ambition
I am a poster girl with no poster
I am thirty-two flavors and then some
and I'm beyond your peripheral vision
so you might want to turn your head
cause someday you're going to get hungry
and eat most of the words you just said"

My only disappointment for the night is that my favourite Ani album (Reprieve) is not represented in the set, but as I have another Ani gig the next night I am not too concerned.

I rock up the next night looking forward to a varied setlist and a better seat. Last night my vantage point was in the balcony, however tonight (thanks to the excellent line up skills of my gig companion Jeff) I have a great spot about five pews from the front.

Ani again starts out with some classics - 'I'm Not Angry', 'Manhole', '78%H2O' (yay Reprieve tune!!) and her indi-chick diatribe 'Napoleon'. The crowd is louder and livelier than last night and is raucous in its approval of said tracks.

A magnificent version of 'The Atom' from Red Letter Days follows new song 'Splinter'. There is rapt attention from everyone in the room - it's real, it's poignant - it's classic Ani.

After a few more "crusty old ones" ('Everest' & 'You Had Time'), Ani again asks for requests and I hit the jackpot tonight as she changes guitars and heads full steam into 'Untouchable Face' - one of the most underrated unrequited love songs ever in my opinion - RESULT!!

A further highlight is Ani's spoken word piece - an untitled work in progress I will call ' The River's Source'. Ani asks the building (being religious in origin and standing since 1806) to pardon her as he has a few thoughts about religion and then begins. Her poem covers many concepts found in Ani's work - the fight against patriarchy, a women's inner power and the need to question what is going on around you. It's just further evidence to me that Ani is a 'high watermark' lyricist.

A few new songs ('Mariachi', 'Zoo', 'Which Side Are You On?' and 'Albacore' - which Ani says is made to be played in a room like this) finish off the main set and Ani returns for a brief encore of two classics - 'Both Hands' and 'Shameless'.

With just her songs and her guitar Ani is the same paragon of inspiration she has been to me for many years. I have thoroughly enjoyed these shows and look forward to seeing her again  - guitar in hand and heart on sleeve.

More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157628865507383/