Nekolicious!

Finally they let me back in. You see, I tried to post yesterday but for some reason Blogger was acting up and wouldn't let me in. So I apologize for them. Now back to business...

Last night I had the good fortune to see Neko Case and the Sadies at Neumo's Cystal Ballroom in Seattle. They sold the place out, drawing one of the rowdiest (read: most drunken) crowds at any show I've yet been to. Dexter Romweber opened up with a nice, albeit unremarkable, surf-rock/rockabilly combo, followed by the Sadies themselves. This was my first time seeing them and I have to say they weren't as dynamic in concert as I expected from their records. Nearly every song felt on the verge of a hoe-down, which meant that by the end of their set their songs felt so samey that they became one long blur. A fun blur though. At times I actually spaced out just watching Dallas Good chain smoke: I mean, the man plays guitar with a lit cigarette in his hand!

Of course, Neko was the star of the show and throughout her set she again and again made it clear why: from her commanding yet playful stage presence to her gorgeous voice she put on a show worthy of her relatively new standing as one of indie-rock's few household names. I recently read an article that placed Neko alongside Björk and Corin Tucker as today's most powerful female vocalists and that really sounds accurate to me. Her outstanding range in covers last night, including Buffy Sainte-Marie, Loretta Lynn and the Shangri-Las, and her work with the New Pornographers further solidifies that notion in my mind: Neko Case can sing just about anything...and well! Last night's show was all over the map, including a song or two from her tour-only Canadian Amp EP (which I was finally able to pick up last night!), the title track of this year's The Tigers Have Spoken, and quite a few songs she co-wrote with the Sadies that'll be on next year's studio album. Regrettably, she didn't play much from Furnace Room Lullaby or Blacklisted, which meant I didn't get to hear my favorite songs of hers, "Guided By Wire" or "I Wish I Was The Moon". Ah well, I didn't walk away disappointed.

Here's a song from Furnace Room Lullaby she did play last night, which she introduced as a song about killing your boyfriend. "Sometimes it has to be done", she observed. Indeed.

Neko Case - "Furnace Room Lullaby"

Neko's still on tour through mid-December, so visit her website to find out if she's kicking out the jams anywhere near you:

Neko Case's Website