Early on in the show at Chico’s El Rey Theatre, Brandi Carlile gazed at the sold out crowd, grin firmly cemented on her face, and gleefully shouted “You guys are so great, and don’t worry– this is going to be long show!” That passion and intense connection between audience and band is what Carlile thrives on and what continues to mark her live performances as such powerful experiences. Her visceral excitement was not only palpable but acted as a current, electrifying those who came to witness the two-plus hours of Carlile’s folk/rock blend.
“Again Today,” the epic closing track from 2006’s The Story, started the show. Against a stark background of amorphous ambient electric guitar, Carlile entered with her rich lower register, singing “Broken sticks and broken stones will turn to dust just like our bones / it’s words that hurt the most, now isn’t it?” It’s one of the most vulnerable songs in her catalogue, and in choosing to open the show with it, essentially Carlile invited the audience into the intimacy of her songwriting world, with all the bruises and imperfections that abound. But with all the admission of heartache and frustration, she also turns up the volume and rocks out with a crashing of electric guitar and her voice soaring up and out with a booming forcefulness. The anthemic construction of the track works to fully engage the crowd, and it was apparent that Carlile was successful as a slew of people from the back rushed the stage immediately as the song ended.
Diving back into material from her debut album, Carlile and her band offered an introspective and tender version of “What Can I Say,” playing off of Josh Neumann’s Celtic-inspired opening cello line. The gentle shuffle of the percussion and Neumann’s cello mixed with Brandi and twins Phil and Tim Hanseroth’s silvery harmonies gave an engrossing new face to an older work. “Closer to You” followed with a more straightforward approach, but burst open at the end with an extended outro of the Beatles’ underrated “I Just Saw a Face,” which inspired a raucous response from the audience in both singing and dancing. Carlile and the band chose to then unplug all of their instruments, huddling together in tight formation to play Give Up The Ghost’s strongest track “Dying Day” without any amplification. Many in the crowd were uninitiated in this ritual, but quickly realized what was happening and quieted down, allowing all to hear. It’s a rare treat to have an artist rely on the sheer acoustics of the room to carry their song forward, but Carlile and her band’s fearless tackling of "Dying Day" further demonstrated their comfort in live performance.
Before launching their exhaustive 2011 tour in May, the band recorded twenty songs for an upcoming studio album with producer Trina Shoemaker. Since the beginning of the tour, they’ve been road-testing a lot of the new material, including ballads “That Wasn’t Me” and “Promise to Keep,” Ramones-inspired “Rattle My Bones” and melodic mid-90’s Indigo Girls throwback “Save Part Of Yourself For Me,” but Carlile chose to pick two others that had seen hardly any stage time: downtempo, harmony-laden “Keep Your Heart Young” (written by Tim Hanseroth) and the rowdy, foot-stomping, riotous “Raise Hell.” The former has a beautiful chorus, but the verse lyrics verge a bit too heavily on cliché. The latter, however, is arguably one of the best songs Carlile has ever written. It borrows heavily from the aesthetic of Johnny Cash (she is known to do a wicked “Jackson/Folsom Prison Blues” medley), but Carlile twists and turns this into a creation that is wholly her own and is guaranteed to get the crowd boisterous and dancing.
The highlight of the evening, though, was the stripped-down acoustic take on “Way To You,” a song that shows up only on their Valentine’s Day XOBC EP from 2010, but is certainly a gem in her catalogue. Allison Miller provided a graceful and restrained snare brush, giving just the right amount of rhythm and percussion as a backdrop to Tim and Phil Hanseroth’s tasteful finger-picking. With Brandi sans guitar, she was able to focus on the color and phrasing of the contemplative lyrics, delivering a confident yet subtle vocal that again signaled the command she has on her instrumental.
It’s difficult to find fault with Carlile and her band’s live act, assuming they’re in tight sync and good and healthy form, because they work off each other’s strengths in such a way that they tap into the essence of musical craft. Certainly the amount of covers can be a bit daunting and trying, given the breadth and depth of Carlile’s collected works. Had she switched out a fairly standard and uninspired take on the Ramones’ “Sedated” she could have fit in “Happy” or “Wasted.” Maybe ditching Patsy Cline’s “Crazy” would have opened up the space for “Eye of the Needle.” But Carlile’s insistence on performing many of the songs that have been so formative for her is a crucial part of her approach to music in and of itself, so it’s tough to begrudge her that choice.
The cadre of new material further indicates that Carlile’s dedicated to pushing her own artistic boundaries. For an artist so deeply in touch with her musicianship and songwriting, it’s important for the listener to cede some control and go along for the ride. If Carlile has proven anything since her debut in 2005, it’s that she’s fully capable of taking her audience on a journey that remains firmly and fondly affixed in their minds. She’s a rare talent among her contemporaries, and watching her grow by leaps and bounds is gratifying and inspiring. And as long as she doesn’t run her voice into the ground, it seems like we’re in for a lot more surprises in 2011 as she embarks on her first-ever solo tour and in 2012 for the release of her next record. Buy tickets now, because this is an act you simply cannot pass up.
Setlist:
Again Today
Looking Out
What Can I Say
Closer To You / I Just Saw A Face outro (Beatles Cover)
Dreams
Dying Day (unplugged)
Keep Your Heart Young [new song]
Way To You
Crazy (Patsy Cline Cover- solo)
Raise Hell [new song]
Before It Breaks
My Song
Turpentine
The Story
Encore:
[Allison Miller Drum Solo]
Sedated (Ramones Cover)
Pride & Joy
Forever Young (Alphaville Cover)
