Touring behind his new self-titled solo album, longtime New Yorker Dean Wareham returned to The Bowery Ballroom Saturday night to face an eagerly awaiting packed house. With a career now entering its’ fourth decade, Wareham is no stranger to these parts or the road for that matter, having toured hard and heavy with his previous outfits, the seminal bands Galaxie 500 and Luna. The Bowery Ballroom, in particular, holds a special place in Wareham’s story, as it served as the venue for Luna’s 2006 farewell shows, historically documented on the much-recommended Matthew Buzzell documentary Tell Me Do You Miss Me.
Much has happened for Wareham in the intervening years. He recorded several albums of lushly orchestrated pop tunes with his wife and bandmate Britta Phillips, penned an engaging and insightful autobiography, and packed up and moved to Southern California after nearly 25 years in the Big Apple. And, while his new Jim James-produced album doesn’t really tread any new ground, it does reinforce the positive traits that have made Wareham’s career so uniquely distinct-the hazy melodies, the guitar fuzz, and the passively steady vocal range that tells his cryptic tales of urban weariness with succinct detail and occasional exhilaration.
At 50 and with streaks of grey framing his bespectacled face, Wareham, onstage dapperly looks the part of the wise English professor. Flanked by Phillips and an additional guitarist and drummer, he spent the 90-minute set showcasing tunes, both new and old. “Holding Pattern” with its’ rhythmic swing punctuating the story of a monotonous life on the road, and “Emancipated Hearts”, an excellent slow-burn of a choice to open the set, represented highlights of Wareham’s recent material. And, with a back catalog as impressive as his to pull from, Wareham made some excellent choices in showcasing “Tiger Lily” and “Moon Palace” from the Luna days, and reaching back even further with the Galaxie 500 classics, “When Will You Come Home”, “Blue Thunder”, and “Tugboat”. Appropriately, the crowd responded strongly.
The whole affair was a bit more workmanlike than expected, and other than a few offhand comments about D Train delays, Wareham spoke little, choosing to keep the New York City homecoming angle to a minimum. Nevertheless, the crowd hung on his words and sounds, absorbing the concert with an awed reverence appropriate for the quietly nuanced atmosphere Wareham’s music demands. It was a good Saturday night spent immersed in the choice selections of an indie rock master. If Wareham does indeed appear a bit professorial these days, then his syllabus is in peak condition.
