Rock 'n' Roll has been around long enough for there to be a number of iron-clad certainties associated with it. Sgt. Pepper will likely top every critic's list from here until the end of time. The good will die young. Keith Richards, on the other hand, will never die, period. And, as was proved once again last night at the 9:30 Club, during the period of time between Neko Case's entrance onto a stage and the sound of the first chord, someone in the audience will yell, "I love you, Neko!!!!" Because everybody loves Neko, and no one is shy about letting the world know. Last night, Case proved once again why such feelings are never misplaced.

It's the voice. That strong, clear, crystalline instrument that cuts through a crowd like a diamond through glass. Listening to Case on record, it's easy to assume that there's more than a bit of studio trickery going on. That in addition to the tasteful reverb often surrounding her vocals that maybe there's more than a little knob twiddling going on to make things sound so stunning. Then she steps on stage with nothing between you and her but a microphone, and you realize that if anything, the recordings don't quite capture the full power of that voice.

Last night's 9:30 set was structured to put Case's voice on best display. Her backing band — guitar, drums, stand-up bass, plus the incomparable Jon Rauhouse on banjo and pedal steel and the always lovely Kelly Hogan handling backing vocals (and unofficial MC duties) — was tight and well rehearsed, but never overpowering. The spotlight was always on Case, and periodically the set list turned up the brightness of that light a few notches.

Photo from Neko Case's recent performance in Los Angeles by Flickr user zonagirl, used under a Creative Commons license.

The set concentrated mostly on Case's last two records, but touched on all of her recorded output, save for The Virginian. The only complaint, as with any artist with a catalog as deep with great songs as this, is that you never get to hear all your favorites. I could grouse about the lack of material from Furnace Room Lullaby, particularly the missing title track or "Thrice All-American", or the absence of more of the great classic country covers she often does, such as Loretta Lynn's "Rated X" or Hank Williams Sr.'s "Alone and Forsaken". But if we get started down that road, Case would have to play a 3+ hour set to please everyone. So we were happy to take in a show dominated by the country-noir gems from Blacklisted and the heady songwriting of Fox Confessor.

And how happy the packed 9:30 Club was. In a room that can be notorious for excessive background noise, between songs you could have heard a pin drop. I turned to my show buddy at one point to make a comment and realized that I wasn't even raising my voice, yet still everyone in the immediate vicinity could hear me, when normally you have to shout to be heard at the 9:30, even with no music playing. All eyes were on the stage, and the only extra noise to be heard was the applause, and the occasional shouts of approval when the setlist strategically placed those moments when Case's voice rang out even more impressively than usual: the sweet, clear humming that closed out the cover of Dylan's "Buckets of Rain", the drawn out, twangy "I" in "Favorite", the torchy, dramatically slowed down intro to "I Wish I Was the Moon".

Case, while more reserved between songs than she sometimes can be, particularly early on, seemed to be having fun as well. That's thanks in no small part to having friend Kelly Hogan on stage for not just her killer voice, but also her between songs repartee. After an early comment about having just come out of a fantasy before the show, Hogan continually poked fun with suggestions of what that fantasy might be. Those at the show are probably still seeing the image of Burt Reynolds delivering guitar picks to Neko while riding a unicorn when they close their eyes. And am I the only one there last night who checked eBay this morning to see if there was a copy of the soundtrack to Gator on vinyl to get the same thrill from it that Case obviously does? At the end of the 75 minute set, Case called to the stage Loudon Wainright's daughter Lucy, and former Archer of Loaf Eric Bachmann (who opened the evening with a well-received set) to help out with her re-imagining of the traditional "John Saw That Number". The happy gospel stomp of that set hands to clapping all over the room, and Case left the stage, as usual, leaving everyone wanting more.

Setlist:

Things That Scare Me
That Teenage Feeling
Set Out Running
Maybe Sparrow
Dirty Knife
The Tigers Have Spoken
Star Witness
Deep Red Bells
Buckets of Rain (Bob Dylan cover)
I Wish I Was the Moon
If You Knew
Ghost Wiring
Hex (Catherine Irwin cover)
Favorite
Hold On, Hold On
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A Widow's Toast
Tightly
Lady Pilot
John Saw That Number