I [Maple Leaf] Canada
So, by now you all know that I pretty much hate Webster Hall. Then why did I go there twice in less than a week? Canadians! Last week was the New Pornographers, and last night was the Weakerthans. Both good shows. Let's see how they compare.
Personality
The New Pornographers: There's almost too much personality to be contained by one supergroup. We were lucky to see a show with Carl Newman, Dan Bejar, and Neko Case, musicians who all merit their own solo/side projects. (Even Kathryn Calder-the sometimes-back-up-singer, sometimes-Neko-Case-stand-in-has her own band.) Though it was nice to see everyone important to the band, I think the songs were divided up a little too judiciously, resulting in more Bejar songs than I would have liked.
The Weakerthans: The A.V. club charges that the Weakerthans don't have any personality at all. I can kind of see where they're coming from. It's not that they're bland or boring-they're not-it's just that you go to their concerts to hear the music and not to watch rock stars.
Manpower and Hardware
The New Pornographers: They completely fell into the Canadian-band stereotype of loading up the stage with anywhere between ten and twelve people, each with a different instrument in tow. It was a nice, big sound.
The Weakerthans: There were only a handful of guys on stage, and they played these instruments: guitar, guitar, guitar, guitar, and drums. Maybe keys. So while they may not have rock-star diva personalities, they do bring a rock 'n' roll sound.
Setlist
The New Pornographers: I'm not as familiar with New Pornographers songs before Twin Cinema, so I would've swapped in "Mutiny, I Promise You" (which they didn't play) for one of those Bejar songs, like "Jackie." Still, they played "Letter From an Occupant" last, breaking my recent streak of disappointing encores.
The Weakerthans: First off, let me say how proud of myself I am for putting the setlist together for Jesse. It was extremely hard. The Weakerthans have a pesky habit of naming their songs in a way that bears no resemblance to any of their corresponding lyrics. When hunting down the title for one of them, the only thing I had to go off of was that they sang the word "apartment"-and I found it! (It was "Confessions of a Futon Revolutionist," and it's amazing that I found it because the song itself is terrific. You should download it.) That said, they played pretty much everything I wanted to hear and did an awesome sad-to-rockin' encore, so I'm thoroughly satisfied.
Cutest Moment
The New Pornographers: I know that I might be the world's only Kathryn fan, but I thought her very-quiet, stripped-down duet with Carl on "Adventures in Solitude" was adorable. Doubly so when she cursed under her breath because the stupid sound system at Webster Hall was throwing off some nasty feedback.
The Weakerthans: It's a tough call. At one point during "The Reasons," all four guitarists stood up on their amps, which was a little heart-melting. I think it was a little big cuter, though, when they dissolved into giggles because they were having a hard time starting off one of the songs, and a couple audience members decided to count them in.
I know we've said this before, but Canadians are really cute.
Songwriting
The New Pornographers: All their songs are some combination of catchy, poppy, pretty, entertaining, and fun, but what the hell do the lyrics mean?
The Weakerthans: After a while, the songs do start to sound the same. This was evident at the concert when they'd start a song and I'd swear it was "Plea from a Cat Named Virtue" and it was "The Reasons" or something instead. But the lyrics are all really, really good. I have a half-baked, English-majory theory that the Weakerthans are masters of the objective correlative, but it's too convoluted to really explain. I just like how their songs usually break down into melancholy lists of things. "I wish I had a socket set to dismantle this morning, one pair of clean socks, and a photo of you."
Happy Halloween!
Personality
The New Pornographers: There's almost too much personality to be contained by one supergroup. We were lucky to see a show with Carl Newman, Dan Bejar, and Neko Case, musicians who all merit their own solo/side projects. (Even Kathryn Calder-the sometimes-back-up-singer, sometimes-Neko-Case-stand-in-has her own band.) Though it was nice to see everyone important to the band, I think the songs were divided up a little too judiciously, resulting in more Bejar songs than I would have liked.
The Weakerthans: The A.V. club charges that the Weakerthans don't have any personality at all. I can kind of see where they're coming from. It's not that they're bland or boring-they're not-it's just that you go to their concerts to hear the music and not to watch rock stars.
Manpower and Hardware
The New Pornographers: They completely fell into the Canadian-band stereotype of loading up the stage with anywhere between ten and twelve people, each with a different instrument in tow. It was a nice, big sound.
The Weakerthans: There were only a handful of guys on stage, and they played these instruments: guitar, guitar, guitar, guitar, and drums. Maybe keys. So while they may not have rock-star diva personalities, they do bring a rock 'n' roll sound.
Setlist
The New Pornographers: I'm not as familiar with New Pornographers songs before Twin Cinema, so I would've swapped in "Mutiny, I Promise You" (which they didn't play) for one of those Bejar songs, like "Jackie." Still, they played "Letter From an Occupant" last, breaking my recent streak of disappointing encores.
The Weakerthans: First off, let me say how proud of myself I am for putting the setlist together for Jesse. It was extremely hard. The Weakerthans have a pesky habit of naming their songs in a way that bears no resemblance to any of their corresponding lyrics. When hunting down the title for one of them, the only thing I had to go off of was that they sang the word "apartment"-and I found it! (It was "Confessions of a Futon Revolutionist," and it's amazing that I found it because the song itself is terrific. You should download it.) That said, they played pretty much everything I wanted to hear and did an awesome sad-to-rockin' encore, so I'm thoroughly satisfied.
Cutest Moment
The New Pornographers: I know that I might be the world's only Kathryn fan, but I thought her very-quiet, stripped-down duet with Carl on "Adventures in Solitude" was adorable. Doubly so when she cursed under her breath because the stupid sound system at Webster Hall was throwing off some nasty feedback.
The Weakerthans: It's a tough call. At one point during "The Reasons," all four guitarists stood up on their amps, which was a little heart-melting. I think it was a little big cuter, though, when they dissolved into giggles because they were having a hard time starting off one of the songs, and a couple audience members decided to count them in.
I know we've said this before, but Canadians are really cute.
Songwriting
The New Pornographers: All their songs are some combination of catchy, poppy, pretty, entertaining, and fun, but what the hell do the lyrics mean?
The Weakerthans: After a while, the songs do start to sound the same. This was evident at the concert when they'd start a song and I'd swear it was "Plea from a Cat Named Virtue" and it was "The Reasons" or something instead. But the lyrics are all really, really good. I have a half-baked, English-majory theory that the Weakerthans are masters of the objective correlative, but it's too convoluted to really explain. I just like how their songs usually break down into melancholy lists of things. "I wish I had a socket set to dismantle this morning, one pair of clean socks, and a photo of you."
Happy Halloween!