when we last saw our heroine
I am on the upward swing of a monstrous summer cold. It struck just in time to bench me from the Derby fundraiser, but akarui_rynka volunteered to drive to the Marian Call concert, thank goodness, because I was going to that no matter what, and that drive home would have been a mistake if I'd been attempting it myself. But I was not! And the concert was SO FUN.
First of all, the location was ADORABLE. I wish I lived in that neighborhood, because I would go to that bar all the time -- and I am not a bar person. Also, it was a neat neighborhood. The bar are all sorts of cool details, like wooden pinball boards repurposed into light fixtures over the booths, and old chemistry sets used as art behind the bar in 'the lab,' the area where Marian Call was to perform. The space was interestingly subdivided, and the food good (we ate dinner before the show), and the drafts were both craft and cheap.
When we wandered back into the performance space, Rynka and I paused to try to figure out where to sit. We were leaned up against a wall, considering the options and admiring the space, when Marian herself walked up, thanked us for coming, and pointed out available seats - telling us we could sit by those guys, who were friendly, or up front in those chairs, which were comfy. Since that answered our question of whether the front table was open because it was reserved, we thanked her and nabbed the table front and center. (Once she seemed out of earshot, Rynka had to ask, "So wait, do you know her?" Which, no, I had not previously met her. Apparently she is friendly and welcoming!)
<
I did say front and center. The typewriter is named Madeleine, for Madeleine L'Engle.
Further endearing herself to me, she opened her concert with "Love and Harmony."
For anyone disinclined to play the stream of that song, it is a song about karaoke, large portions of which she renders in true karaoke style. There's something awesome (and brave) about opening a performance with a song that is intentionally sung badly. Afterward, she claimed that she wrote it because it was a song that didn't exist, but needed to. I definitely needed to buy a copy when I got home, so maybe it did need to exist?
She was utterly charming throughout the performance. Although she did hold off on her fannish songs until the second half of the concert, she didn't appear to have a set list, apparently deciding which song to do next as the moment took her (her guitarist, whose name I knew until I started typing this, had a music stand and a giant book of music and would just nod and page to whatever song she hinted at). Her stories, asides and explanations were interesting - sometimes illuminating about a song's origins, very often funny. "Dear Mister Darcy" tells what happens "when a really sweet, shy, nerdy boy and girl like each other very very much -- which is absolutely nothing." Also, if anyone didn't know who Mister Darcy was, they were instructed to ask some girls.
Apparently, her most requested song, "It's Good to Have Jayne on Your Side," was originally written by another Alaskan songwriter about a guy named Shane, and "every word is true." Honestly, I think that makes it even better.
She encouraged audience participation -- joining in on do-do-do-doos and whistling of "Good Morning Moon" (which included her laughing at the muppet head nodding that naturally happens while singing those sounds [which in turn led to her singing in an impressive Beeker voice] and the faces the audience makes while attempting to whistle), echoing back lines for "Avocado Baby," making chomp-chomp gestures for "Shark Week" (tossed into the mix when a little kid walking by the windows was waved inside along with his parents), and lofting beers for "It's Good to Have Jayne on Your Side." The best might have been when she kept encouraging us to let out more aggression in singing "We're Out For Blood (Zombie Cheerleaders)," because she'd joked about appalling passersby -- and then there really was a double take from people walking on the sidewalk.
Seriously, there were so many great moments. I wish I'd felt better; I'm glad I went anyway. I had such a great time - and getting FB messages from Rynka about her favorite songs from the new album in the days following the concert made me grin so hard. And I'm excited that Marian Call is passing back through my area in a couple weeks. Hopefully, I will be off work and over the last of this cold. If you get a chance to see her, go!
The Dreamwidth version of this entry currently has
comments.
First of all, the location was ADORABLE. I wish I lived in that neighborhood, because I would go to that bar all the time -- and I am not a bar person. Also, it was a neat neighborhood. The bar are all sorts of cool details, like wooden pinball boards repurposed into light fixtures over the booths, and old chemistry sets used as art behind the bar in 'the lab,' the area where Marian Call was to perform. The space was interestingly subdivided, and the food good (we ate dinner before the show), and the drafts were both craft and cheap.
When we wandered back into the performance space, Rynka and I paused to try to figure out where to sit. We were leaned up against a wall, considering the options and admiring the space, when Marian herself walked up, thanked us for coming, and pointed out available seats - telling us we could sit by those guys, who were friendly, or up front in those chairs, which were comfy. Since that answered our question of whether the front table was open because it was reserved, we thanked her and nabbed the table front and center. (Once she seemed out of earshot, Rynka had to ask, "So wait, do you know her?" Which, no, I had not previously met her. Apparently she is friendly and welcoming!)
<
I did say front and center. The typewriter is named Madeleine, for Madeleine L'Engle.
Further endearing herself to me, she opened her concert with "Love and Harmony."
For anyone disinclined to play the stream of that song, it is a song about karaoke, large portions of which she renders in true karaoke style. There's something awesome (and brave) about opening a performance with a song that is intentionally sung badly. Afterward, she claimed that she wrote it because it was a song that didn't exist, but needed to. I definitely needed to buy a copy when I got home, so maybe it did need to exist?
She was utterly charming throughout the performance. Although she did hold off on her fannish songs until the second half of the concert, she didn't appear to have a set list, apparently deciding which song to do next as the moment took her (her guitarist, whose name I knew until I started typing this, had a music stand and a giant book of music and would just nod and page to whatever song she hinted at). Her stories, asides and explanations were interesting - sometimes illuminating about a song's origins, very often funny. "Dear Mister Darcy" tells what happens "when a really sweet, shy, nerdy boy and girl like each other very very much -- which is absolutely nothing." Also, if anyone didn't know who Mister Darcy was, they were instructed to ask some girls.
Apparently, her most requested song, "It's Good to Have Jayne on Your Side," was originally written by another Alaskan songwriter about a guy named Shane, and "every word is true." Honestly, I think that makes it even better.
She encouraged audience participation -- joining in on do-do-do-doos and whistling of "Good Morning Moon" (which included her laughing at the muppet head nodding that naturally happens while singing those sounds [which in turn led to her singing in an impressive Beeker voice] and the faces the audience makes while attempting to whistle), echoing back lines for "Avocado Baby," making chomp-chomp gestures for "Shark Week" (tossed into the mix when a little kid walking by the windows was waved inside along with his parents), and lofting beers for "It's Good to Have Jayne on Your Side." The best might have been when she kept encouraging us to let out more aggression in singing "We're Out For Blood (Zombie Cheerleaders)," because she'd joked about appalling passersby -- and then there really was a double take from people walking on the sidewalk.
Seriously, there were so many great moments. I wish I'd felt better; I'm glad I went anyway. I had such a great time - and getting FB messages from Rynka about her favorite songs from the new album in the days following the concert made me grin so hard. And I'm excited that Marian Call is passing back through my area in a couple weeks. Hopefully, I will be off work and over the last of this cold. If you get a chance to see her, go!
The Dreamwidth version of this entry currently has
comments.