September 25, 2006

The Sound of a Ballroom Full of Swooning Women

Haven't done one of these in a while -- concert recap! I've been gigging here and there, but trying something new: not hovering with my camera trying to capture every key moment and just enjoying the moment.

With that said, yes, I did take one shot of my last gig -- a shite shot as the idea of getting camera flash-happy at such an intimate (well, as intimate as Hiro Ballroom gets), low-key gig as last Wednesday's show with Sondre Lerche seemed wrong. To a 70% female and seated (I felt like I was in a wacked-out Japanese elementary school auditorium) audience, Sondre sang some oldies, some stuff from Duper Sessions and some tracks from his next album, the "funny" Phantom Punch (his adjective; some of the audience members started cracking up for whatever reason when he announced the new album title).

Accompanied only by his guitar, I was struck by how amazing his voice is. As I walked through Chelsea after the 90+ minute gig, I remember turning to my friend and gushing about his vocal range. Yes, I was gushing. It was the first time I've seen him live and I was awed. Add a disarmingly charming and comic banter style, I could sense that I wasn't the only babbling audience member.

Highlights:
Human Hands (Elvis Costello cover)
Modern Nature (the audience practically cooed the female duet part back)
Two Way Monologue
Minor Detail

Jury is still out on the Phantom Punch songs he played.

The only negative of the night was the distracting shaka-shaka-clank-crack sounds from the nearby bar. When the only other sound in the joint is from a singer and his guitar, that sounds of ice rattling, bottle opening, glass smaking the bar was really distracting. Hiro, not such a good venue for solo balladeer.

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