Friday, May 28, 2004
Lunacy
It's 1:30 am, and I'm too wired to even bother to sleep. I went to catch a band tonight. Eva Moon was playing a late show at the Central Saloon, so I bopped by on my way to work. Eva, of course, is the lead singer for Balkanarama. I love their stuff, so when Eva started this side project... Wait, maybe this is the main project and Balkanarama is just part of the journey. I don't know. I didn't ask. All I know is that I wanted to see this act and I finally got my chance.
I haven't been to a club to see a band in over a decade. The last time, I think, is when Noodles and I went to see The Rainmakers in Chicago. No, wait, we did see the Bodeans in Seattle. That was the same night I had my first experience with crime. But that's another tale. Anyway, it was great. For me, that is. I'm not so sure about the band. I got to the club about quarter 'til midnight. There was a nice crowd milling about Pioneer Square, but the Central Saloon was kind of empty. There was some other band, whose name I didn't catch, on the bill as well and they were clearing out there stuff. Good for me, but since Eva's band was scheduled to go on at 11:30, not so good for them. People drifted away as they set up and by the time they started there was pretty much just me and the entourage of the other band hanging out by the stage area. By the end of the set, there was about three up front and maybe a dozen folks hanging out by the bar. I got the impression that it wasn't the greatest night of Eva's life.
That's too bad, because I really enjoyed the show. The performance was great--every member of the group come across as solid musicians. (Like I know such things. Okay, at least I know a bad performance when I see it and tonight I didn't see it.) I don't know how to label the style--kind of jazzy, maybe? To me, it seemed like the keyboards and saxophone dominated the sound. None of the songs moved incredibly fast but they all had a solid beat. Of course, what really overshadowed it all was Eva's voice and lyrics. It is to die for. When she cuts loose, her voice just fills the space. And the lyrics were witty and/or soulful. The humorous tunes were not quite the sharp barbs of Tom Lehrer, but the kept me chuckling. I'm jealous of the way she's been able to craft the words to not only pull off joke after joke but also to weave together a world in a single song. The only drawback is that much of her material is, as the CD blurb says, grown-up pop. I don't know if I want to let my little ones listen to it. (I really, really do not want to have to explain "Dinosaur of Love" to Bunnah.) They're such big Balkanarama fans that they'll probably hate me for not sharing Eva Moon with them. But hopefully, when they're old enough, they'll realize it was worth the wait.
I haven't been to a club to see a band in over a decade. The last time, I think, is when Noodles and I went to see The Rainmakers in Chicago. No, wait, we did see the Bodeans in Seattle. That was the same night I had my first experience with crime. But that's another tale. Anyway, it was great. For me, that is. I'm not so sure about the band. I got to the club about quarter 'til midnight. There was a nice crowd milling about Pioneer Square, but the Central Saloon was kind of empty. There was some other band, whose name I didn't catch, on the bill as well and they were clearing out there stuff. Good for me, but since Eva's band was scheduled to go on at 11:30, not so good for them. People drifted away as they set up and by the time they started there was pretty much just me and the entourage of the other band hanging out by the stage area. By the end of the set, there was about three up front and maybe a dozen folks hanging out by the bar. I got the impression that it wasn't the greatest night of Eva's life.
That's too bad, because I really enjoyed the show. The performance was great--every member of the group come across as solid musicians. (Like I know such things. Okay, at least I know a bad performance when I see it and tonight I didn't see it.) I don't know how to label the style--kind of jazzy, maybe? To me, it seemed like the keyboards and saxophone dominated the sound. None of the songs moved incredibly fast but they all had a solid beat. Of course, what really overshadowed it all was Eva's voice and lyrics. It is to die for. When she cuts loose, her voice just fills the space. And the lyrics were witty and/or soulful. The humorous tunes were not quite the sharp barbs of Tom Lehrer, but the kept me chuckling. I'm jealous of the way she's been able to craft the words to not only pull off joke after joke but also to weave together a world in a single song. The only drawback is that much of her material is, as the CD blurb says, grown-up pop. I don't know if I want to let my little ones listen to it. (I really, really do not want to have to explain "Dinosaur of Love" to Bunnah.) They're such big Balkanarama fans that they'll probably hate me for not sharing Eva Moon with them. But hopefully, when they're old enough, they'll realize it was worth the wait.
