the oh so quiet show

Lykke Li at Music Hall of Williamsburg, 10/21

Way back when I cared more, I would go to concerts before the doors were to open in order to get the best view of the stage. That is, pressed up right against it. Besides getting an awesome view, I’d also have something to lean against for the next few hours of waiting and watching, which were crucial to my feet not turning to jelly.

This past Monday when I went to the Lykke Li show at Music Hall of Williamsburg, I would’ve have liked to have been up at the front, but I also wanted to not stand for hours and have enough time to feed myself the nightly meal most humans are accustomed to eating. So my friends and I left my apartment at 9:30 to get there at 10, something completely unheard of back in my high school years of obsessively getting to concerts too early, i.e. before the sun went down.

What else has changed since 2002? I hadn’t been to 66 North 6th Street since 2002, for one thing. My memory of the previous North Six was that it felt like being in an elementary school gym, the kind that doubles as a stage, and this gym happened to be behind fairly unmarked doors, doors that could’ve led to an abandoned warehouse or killing room. Seeing the updated space was like, whoa, sparkly. The show I saw was The Velvet Teen (which felt like it had an audience of about 10 people) and it was possibly my first foray into Williamsburg, which at the time was seemingly devoid of all human life. It was creepy.

my view...
Lykke Li

Oh yeah, so since I got there at 10, I ended up somewhere near the back looking through the heads of all the taller people around me, which was probably 99% of them. But it was fine. I enjoyed it. She played nearly her whole album plus some covers that I didn’t know.  Lykke Li is definitely some sort of awesome; she sings well, gives off this lively but not frighteningly energetic aura, and kinda…prances around the stage. Or as Olivia said, “She looks retarded when she dances, but then she looks cool because has so much self confidence.” She dances like she doesn’t give a crap about anything, which is the best way to do it, unless you’re failing your arms and hitting people/fragile items.She enjoyed herself, we enjoyed ourselves, and everyone was happies.

Lykke Li at Music Hall of Williamsburg
Another view

My 6+ foot tall friend KÃ¥re shot this photo to show me what it’s like when your view isn’t obstructed by a forest of shadowed heads. It’s like when you feel like there’s a squirrel up your nose and suddenly, the squirrels die and you can breathe easily.  Nice.

I would go again.  Yes.

And if you haven’t heard Lykke Li before, a remix I quite like:

[audio:http://music.diskobox.net/mp3s/lykkeli-littlebit-diegomix.mp3]

Andrew Bird in Tarrytown, October 2nd

He has a guitar
THE BIRD!

In just a little over half an hour, I had Metro North-ed my way out of the city into the cute, cozy streets of Tarrytown. First (and only) stop: ANDREW BIRD.  Andrew Bird in all his solo stripy socked glory, effortlessly building loop upon loop of plucky violin strings, or non-plucky, or guitar, or whistling, or xylophone, or hand clapping. And don’t forget about his singing.  Where does such a warm and comforting voice come from?  How could a mere mortal do all of the above?  Hooooow?

OH SWEET JESUS, I LOVE YOU, ANDREW BIRD. And even though nothing could’ve been better than his show at Union Hall, Tarrytown Music Hall made for a lovely venue. I got to sit down! Like whoa. I’m so accustomed to sitting down all day that standing for a few hours would probably kill my feet. My old age is catching up to me.

Of course, if I had to stand the show still would’ve been a million kinds of awesome.

He played a bunch of new songs that I can’t remember.  And some older ones.  But everything sounds new again when he goes at them in a live, solo setting.  He morphs melodies you thought you knew into something else.  THEY ARE REBORN! …Without messy amniotic fluid.

Sandro Perri
Sandro Perri

Unbeknownst to be beforehand, Sandro Perri was the opener. It was somewhat exciting for me since I’m a fan of his music as Polmo Polpo, but I was unfamiliar with his acoustic material of guitar + singing + bass drum. Not sure what I like better; it’s all rather good.