One could be excused for missing Joanna Newsom’s opening act, the forgettable and largely annoying P.G. Six, who seemed determined to fuse the 70’s hard-jam sensibilities of Neil Young with the more jazzy leanings of Tom Verlaine and Television. They largely failed to approach either of those heights, and for an audience that was primed for an evening of nouveau folk harp and sweet melodies, it was a mismatch to begin with. As it turned out, a large portion of the sold-out crowd didn’t have much choice as to whether they saw the openers or not: by the time P.G. Six took the stage, the line to get into the ‘Cat still stretched all the way down the block to the front of St. Ex. When they left the stage some time later (and almost an hour and a half after doors opened), there was still a significant line waiting to get in. Seriously, I know space is limited in the entranceway of the club, but there has to be a more efficient way of getting bodies in the door for a sold out weekend show.
By the time Newsom did take the stage, though, it seemed most of those who wanted to be there had made their entrance. They stood in hushed anticipation, breaking out into exuberant cheering as she walked onstage. It’s a wonder to see the kind of adulation the shy harpist inspires. Of course, she inspires disdain just as fierce in those who just can’t get their ears to accept the childlike warble of her peculiar vocals. Those folks, of course, weren’t around, unless they’d been dragged in by friends determined to win them over.
Whether such conversions were made, I can’t say, though she seemed to make good headway early on. Newsom began the concert with the first song from her first full length, “Bridges and Balloons,” probably the song that had served as the introduction to her music for many in the room. After the initial excited hollering of recognition, the respectful hush came down again, most eyes and ears focused in smiling reverie on the delicate sounds issuing from the harp and voice on stage. This continued as she went on into “The Book of Right On,” also from the first record, and a less familiar Scottish hymn that still fit easily into audience expectations.
Photo of Joanna Newsom by Flickr user beth harris. Used by permission.
