Friday, February 01, 2008

Joanna Newsom at BAM - Concert Review


With the drama endured, and my own tickets ensured, it was finally time to take in a show: the first night of Joanna Newsom's two-night stint at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, accompanied by the Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra.

I arrived to find that my tickets in the third row of the Orchestra were indeed fantastic, but, since they were stage left, offered a less than full view of Newsom on her enormous harp. Leaning to the right, practically on the shoulder of my neighbor, I had a 3/4 view of her face. Luckily, there were plenty of other people to watch.

An orchestra of 30 or so sat behind her, and two smartly dressed chaps sat to her left and right, close to the front of the stage. One switched between banjo and something similar to a mandolin, the other handled drums and backup vocals.

The first Act of the night was Ys in order, in its entirety. "Emily" has never sounded better, and toward the climax of the song I found myself smiling broadly, audibly gasping, as delirious as a child on Christmas morning (0r a Jewish kid on the first night of Yom Kippur).

"Monkey and Bear" was catchy as all-hell. "Sawdust and Diamonds", performed solo and showcasing Newsom's deft digits, was perfect, although it was rather odd to see the entire orchestra sitting on their hands for 10 minutes.

"Only Skin" and "Cosmia" are my two favorite tracks off Ys, and, of course, they didn't disappoint with such a force lifting them up. "Only Skin" will never sound as good without Bill Callahan's dark baritone backing the climax, but the live drums certainly add a tremendous bass. "Cosmia" didn't hit move into its sharp chorus as gracefully and cleanly as it does on the album, but it was still a beautiful closing to the first half, with added instrumentation making it that more intricate.

Completely blown away, I needed fresh air. As I walked out, I spotted a row of SNL members that included Andy Samberg, Amy Poehler and Seth Myers.

The second half was more casual, more fun and equally stupefying. Full band versions of "The Book of Right On", "Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie" and "Peach, Plum, Pear" were highlights, but the relatively new "Colleen" was the standout track. Also a standout? Newsom's outrageously short pink dress that made her look like some kind of angelic gypsy Barbie. There was also an awkward 3-minute Obama endorsement disguised as band banter that didn't seem to sway much of the audience. (Perhaps Park Slope is Clinton country?)

The second-standing ovation of the night drew Newsom and friend Kevin Barker for a short encore that didn't fully pacify me, but it would be greedy to ask for more than she had already given me during the evening.

In short, this was the best musical performance I have ever seen. The venue, the seats, the orchestra, the artist. My friend Derekh, who accompanied me to the concert, called it "transcendent." That's about right.


Photo courtesy of Kyle Dean Reinford, who I found on Flickr

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