Dirty Projectors @ Black Cat

Up until recently, Longstreth & co. have never made accessibility their first consideration. The melodies were meandering and peppered with melisma and the harmonies that Longstreth and the three women of the Dirty Projectors constructed weren't always in keys one might find pop songs. Yet here they were, only four months after a very successful 9:30 Club opening slot, headlining a sold out Black Cat show, and despite their comfort level onstage, their insecurities about performing for such a crowd were definitely noticeable. With the exception of a few no-holds-barred instrumental thrashing jams, the band was not terribly mobile (though very energetic).

Even during the animated performance of soul jam gone worldly, "Stillness is the Move" from singer/guitarist Amber Coffman, there was a sense that, at least vocally, she was holding something back. When she let out her last wail, one she reciprocated in full during "Knotty Pine," it was clear just how emotionally evocative she could be. "Knotty Pine," outright rocker "Cannibal Resource" and soft Deradoorian solo "Two Doves" were the arguable high points of the set.

For the most part it was these evocative moments that shone through. The material is so solid that it didn't matter whether the women were pulling off vocal acrobatics in round (as in during "Remade Horizon") or whether Longstreth was having a rare solo moment ("Police Story"). The material was as emotional as it was carefully constructed, and the audience was visibly moved. The band also continued to switch up who was on stage and who played various instruments over the course of the set, assuring that neither the band nor the audience got bored.