Photo Credit: Joan Bowlen
For a singer who can’t seem to escape constant mention of her (fairly) new romance with Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, Kathleen Edwards’ latest release Voyageur is full of heartbreak, frustration and hard-edged melancholy. It’s understandable, though, considering she’s recently come off a divorce to longtime collaborator Colin Cripps, and perhaps the lengthy space between 2008’s Asking For Flowers and Voyageur produced some artistic weariness and doubt. But, despite the setbacks and obstructions, Edwards’ latest effort is a real tour-de-force, with each of its ten songs coming across as fully realized and utterly forceful vignettes of a writer who has grown with maturity into the depths of her craft.
The worry, however, since Voyageur was so exquisitely honed on record by Edwards and Vernon as co-producers, is whether or not it will translate well when put on stage. Those fears were silenced fairly definitively after the opening two songs from Edwards’ set at the Independent in San Francisco last night. “Empty Threat” began the evening, which has Edwards chanting on the chorus, “I’m moving to America / moving to America / it’s an empty threat.” It started somewhat rigidly, but after the first chorus she physically relaxed and the band kicked in with a good amount of swagger. But it was the second song, “Chameleon/Comedian,” where they started to hit their stride. Edwards sang with a slight snarl, and really dug into the fire of the track.
“Asking For Flowers,” while a crowd-pleaser was a bit lackluster, but this was quickly concealed by a superlative take on “House Full of Empty Rooms.” She introduced it by discussing how difficult it continues to be to get up on stage every night and have to sing some of the work from Voyageur, because it’s so emotionally vulnerable and intense, with “House Full of Empty Rooms” being one of the hardest. She appeared at points shaken, with her voice breaking at a couple of points, but she managed to keep it together for the entirety of the track. It was incredible watching her on stage, because she so clearly connects with the work, even if that comes at the expense of her own well-being. Thankfully, “Goodnight, California” came next, which offered her the chance to sink into the expanse of the piece’s lengthy jam session.
One of Voyageur’s peppier tunes is “Sidecar,” which discusses her relationship with Vernon, and last night it was encased in a disco-tinged, energetic groove. The band then left for Edwards’ only solo song of the night, Failer’s highlight “Hockey Skates.” It was an incredibly vulnerable, fragile and soulful rendition of the piece, with a voice that sounds increasingly more stable and ripened than it has in the past. The band then returned for a fairly subdued cover of The Flaming Lips’ “Feeling Yourself Disintegrate.” It wasn’t the best choice to follow “Hockey Skates,” because when added to the down-tempo opening of “Going To Hell,” it made the middle section of the show really lag under the intense emotional weight and slowness of the pieces. Here it became apparent that the show could use a little adjustment in terms of pacing, perhaps moving “Feeling Yourself Disintegrate” to a little later, between “12 Bellevue” and “Back to Me.” Even so, the songs were well-executed and thoughtfully done, so they still were enjoyable to listen to.
It was nice to see “12 Bellevue” and “Back To Me” thrown in, as they’re crowd favorites and translate really well live, and provided a much needed injection of energy to the set. But it was the rest of the show, which was made up mostly of Voyageur songs, which demonstrated how magnificent the new album really is. “Going To Hell” exhibited the beautiful tension between restraint and rocking out, and also saw Edwards really digging into the catharsis of shouting during the jam-infused ending. “A Soft Place To Land” was gorgeous as ever, “Mint” had a fantastic sing-a-long part and then “Change The Sheets” brought huge applause and was lithe, tight and seamless.
The encore section was somewhat shortened, but was certainly an outstanding was to end the show. “For The Record” opens with its usual quiet keyboard line, before building and crescendo-ing, with Edwards singing “hang me up on your cross / for the record, I only wanted to sing songs.” It is a song that marries the good qualities of Vernon’s penchant for epic songwriting and Edwards’ expressive and emotionally rich voice. But it was the last song that really served as the best closer. To celebrate Earth Hour, the band descended into the crowd, carrying acoustic instruments and lit by neon glow sticks, and performed a hushed, arresting and utterly remarkable take on “Six O’Clock News.” The audience was rapt throughout the whole thing, and only joined in to sing the chorus near the end, after being urged to do so by the band. It was an incredibly special moment, and one that happens quite infrequently. And then as soon as they were there, they were gone, and the night had come to a close, but the air continued to hang heavy with intensity and catharsis– just like the end to any good Kathleen Edwards show should be.
Photo Credit: Joan Bowlen
Photo Credit: Joan Bowlen
Setlist:
Empty Threat
Chameleon/Comedian
Asking For Flowers
House Full Of Empty Rooms
Goodnight, California
In State
Sidecar
Hockey Skates (solo acoustic)
Feeling Yourself Disintegrate (Flaming Lips cover)
Going To Hell
12 Bellevue
Back To Me
A Soft Place To Land
Mint
Change The Sheets
Encore:
For The Record
Six O’Clock News (acoustic)
