last night at the lizard

[mwred]

A version of this write-up about last night's Jocie Adams and Barr Brothers show appears, with a few photos, at http://www.whatilikeissounds.blogspot.com:

A couple songs into her set, Jocie Adams seemed to be trying to get permission to use some piece of the percussive array assembled and awaiting the Barr Brothers' set. By the time word got back to drummer Andrew, it had apparently telephoned into a sit-in request. He slid around the crowded perimeter of the basement room and took his seat quietly. A well-placed bass drum hit clearly surprised, and then delighted, Jocie; she broke a grin and dug in a little deeper.

This was one of several moments of impromptu play that added a lightness to the sometimes heavy tone of much of this opening set celebrating the release of Adams' new CD Bed of Notions. Jocie accompanied herself on fingerstyle guitar and piano, and was backed by upright bassist Zack Cirus, cellist Robin Ryczek, and harmony vocalist Martha Guenther. Her presence was that of someone whose appearances on television, hobnobbing with top shelf performers like Emmylou Harris, and inclusion on many critics' "best of" lists appears not gone to her head.

She seemed almost bashful about being the emcee, but when she opened her mouth to sing, something came over the room. There were more than a couple moments of lump-in-throat beauty. This was powerful stuff. The songs were earnest; what they sometimes lacked in playfulness they made up for some vivid and arrestingly asymmetrical turns of phrase animated by well-placed vocal harmonies.

Several more guests sat in over the course of the set, including Brad Barr on piano, Dinty Child on fiddle, and a violinist whose name I didn't catch. With the Low Anthem's touring schedule I don't know how often this ensemble will be able to gather to work up these songs more fully. There's some amazing possibility here.

After a short set by a chamber group called the K-something Trio which included the sit-in violinist -- an unexpected and cool part of the evening -- the Barrs took the stage, accompanied by fellow Montreal players Andres Vial and Sarah Page. They opened with a very strong 'Devil in the Morning,' an easy contender for song-most-often-in-my-head in the last year and one of several pieces from their debut played before my early exit. (Even on a snow day, the kiddo doesn't adjust her wake-up time to accommodate her pop's live music habit). They also played the lovely instrumental creation myth Sarah Through the Wall, from Brad's acoustic Fall Apartment record, and several new-to-me tunes.

They sounded great, individually and as a group. The music was at once loose, sharp, and invested. Brad was in good voice on guitar and pipes, and Andrew killed as usual on trap set, palms, and sundry other percussion tools. Sarah's harp was pretty low in the mix on the several more electric tunes, but on the quieter songs it added a percussive texture. Andres moved between keys, bass, drums (and did her play the vibes?) and, like everyone else, sang some soft harmonies.

It was great to see this band in this room, clearly a place with special associations for Brad and Andrew; Brad said they'd been regular listeners here back before The Fringe's residency moved to what's now the Lily Pad.

I'm curious to know how the rest of the set was. With Jocie and her band, the members of the chamber trio, Marc Friedman and Jeff Prytowsky (not to mention Johnny Trama, Laura Cortese, the aforementioned Dinty Child, and god knows what other great players) lurking the room, who knows what transpired. For me, there was this: no traffic, no snow yet, and some great music bouncing around my sleepy head.

[harrymcq]

Very cool! Thanks for the review! Anyone notice if any of these Barr Bros sets have been recorded? I know Cleantone made it to at least one of the shows...

[mwred]

Thanks!

I saw a taping rig, and I don't know Cleantone, but might that have been him with the video camera?

[bear]

Clinton was at the lizard lounge. I was in pvd last night and didnt see a taper

[booher]

I saw a few people recording for Jocie, including video and audio. But I didn't catch anyone for the Bros.

[llamainitiative]

Setlist and some photos at twitter.com/llamainitiative