after making a brief stop at the great mall in olathe to destroy the children’s book section of the soon-to-be out of business foozles ($4 hardbacks, $2 paperbacks - the cookbook section is already trashed), we braved the 45 minute trip out to lawrence last night for bill callahan (he of (smog) [should i have used brackets there, or double parenthesis here?] fame) and pixie du jour joanna newsom at the granada.
full of fast-foodesque greek food, we made our way into the venue, where both of us realized that the last time we’d been to the granada, it had been a few years ago for the nasty-tacular dj funk, detroit grand pubahs, and konsept (who played my axis 001 and sheet one records that night) - not to mention a high level of debauchery, although we weren’t together at the time.
the place wasn’t overly packed in the early evening, but was filling up at a steady pace. bill callahan went on at 9 with “blood red bird”, proceeding to play through a few old-but-not-that-old tracks, two new ones, and then of course several from a river ain’ too much to love. his set consisted of nothing but himself, his guitar, and his songs - but with callahan, that’s all you really need. was it a different experience than a little over a year ago at the smaller grand emporium, where he was backed by a band? yes. last night was enjoyable, although not as intimate, despite the more stripped-down approach.
after a forty minute - FORTY MINUTE - intermission, joanna newsom took the stage. all around us came the “ooohs” and “awwwwhs” and “oh she’s so cute!” exclamations that have me wondering how close newsom is to being this generation’s tori amos. she played her first two songs solo, and the reception given by the now-packed theater was enthusiastic. a 5-piece backing band joined her for the next two songs, “bridges and balloons” and “monkey & bear”, both of which stretched out into expansive arrangements of the elements present - it was interesting to see these songs brought to life on stage, and being given the dynamic of life inherent in the post-folk genre that’s easily taken for granted when only exposed to recorded output.
the band left the stage after these two songs, and newsom played again on her own. it was at this point, however, that the looming early morning wake-up calls and aching feet of that overly-extended intermission began making their presence known, and we made our way to the exit.
stephanie and i both agreed that had the venue been more akin to, say, the warhol’s concert space in pittsburgh - comfortable seating, a more mature audience, better acoustics - the show would have been more enjoyable. it is indeed difficult to feel a connection with an artist, especially one who relies heavily on pulling those inner heart strings, in an unaccomodating environment.
oh, and by the way . . . i almost wanted to rush out of there to verify something that, well . . . blew my mind. when newsom was introducing her backing band, she referenced her mandolin player as ryan francesconi.
wait — ryan francesconi - rf? of this year’s stunning views of distant towns? of falls and interno and the new springs, re:makes and mixes of album? no way. but yeah, sure enough, it’s him, according to his website - “I will be touring with Joanna Newsom this November and December.” which leads me to this question — WHY THE HELL WAS THERE A 40+ MINUTE INTERMISSION when the creator of one of the best albums this year is sitting back in the dressing room? i understand needing to fill time but come on!
this will probably be our last time to the granada unless an unmissable opportunity comes along - we just weren’t feeling the place at all, and honestly, never really have. the jackpot, or bottleneck - maybe - that drive out there isn’t that bad after all, but maybe we’re just getting old and more elite or something. the realization is that when you’ve made it to the granada, you’ve gone a bit above our comfort level’s radar. given that we were both there largely for callahan’s set, with a much smaller eye towards newsom - who is easily much more than the gimmick of a girl and a harp, and would have probably been far more magical under more embracing circumstances - perhaps we were ourselves out of our element, showing up once again for the opening act.
