A couple weeks ago I got a Filter newsletter and the words “Neko Case” caught my eye. They were having a contest and the first person to email back got two tix to her upcoming show. I shot off a quick misspelled email, “I waqnna go” and a few minutes later got a confirmation email stating “You got it.” Whoooo hooooo.
Saturday’s show at The Fonda was her largest headlining show yet in Los Angeles. The Fonda is about as large a venue you can play around town while still maintaining some intimacy. The sold out show this night was pushing it, due to cramped quarters and what appeared to be a broken air conditioning system. Before Eric Bachmann went on I was chatting up Jacinta who was selling a cool coloring book next to Neko’s merch section. Check out www.girlsnotchicks.com to order a copy.
Eric Bachmann has been in the game for quite some time. His legendary band Archers of Loaf and more recent project, Crooked Fingers have gained numerous fans. As Starr, Stella and I were watching Starr informed me that:
° Archers were one of her favorite bands
° She used to run in college while listening to Crooked Fingers
° Now she enjoys the swing sets at Cherry Park while listening to his solo work.
It takes a lot to hop on stage in front of a thousand people with only a guitar in hand. Eric pulled it off though. “Man O War” from his new-ish album To the Races was the highlight of the set for me.
After grabbing a drink upstairs I headed back down right as Neko was taking the stage. Everyone was in for quite a surprise though. Neko was up to introduce Country music legend, Porter Wagoner who was recently signed to Neko’s label ANTI. Apparently Porter and Marty Stuart are finishing up a new record to celebrate Porter’s 50+ years in the biz. As their guest they welcomed Dwight Yoakam and Billy Bob Thornton to join them on stage for some songs. It was quite a site to see, and with Porter’s dry take on tracks like “Confessions of A Broken Man” and “The Rubber Room” it made for an unforgettable performance. (for the record.Porter might be the best dressed man in HISTORY)
There was another short break before Neko came out with her band. If there’s a better voice out there, I haven’t heard it. Her vocal levels were set quite loud but that didn’t take away from the music at all. It mostly made me think how she seemed to nail every (often extended) note. Her set consisted of material mostly off Fox Confessor Brings the Flood and she mixed in a Dylan cover “Buckets of Rain” and some choice cuts from her highly recommended live album The Tigers have Spoken. They included “If You Knew,” “Favorite,” and the title track. I have a high level of admiration for any artist that goes it on their own and succeeds. I think the most impressive aspect of Neko’s music is that it’s only getting better. She was also joined by the awesome Rachel Flotard from Visqueen on backing vocals which was a treat. Luck has it that she’ll be rockin’ a couple/few festival dates this summer so make it a point to get out and see her when you can. She’s also performing a couple shows in New York City next week too.
We’ve been frequenting the Fonda quite a bit the last couple months and the security has been increasingly friendly. They block off the front few spots directly in front of the theater and they let us park the truck out there once the show is over. I headed out before the encore and got Bessie set up for a cream slinging onslaught. Once the encore was finished the fans came out in droves and thanks to some help from Mark we were able to fill most everyone’s request.
