Most Excellent Concert

Wouldn't you know, the one time I don't bring my camera to a concert, I actually could have taken some great photos. It was at the Brattle - generally a movie theatre, they've started hosting small music events - my favorite kind! Jon and I had seats smack dab in the center of the row, fifth row from the stage. Unbelievable luck (general admission, you see. No assigned seats).

Who did we see?

The Swell Season - better known as "the guy" and "the girl" from the indie movie/musical Once. More properly known as Glen Hansard, lead singer of the Irish band The Frames and Czech singer and pianist Markéta Irglová. The movie is great - I highly recommend it if you can find it playing in your area (either a really large multiplex or an indie theater).

At the concert they played almost the entire album, and a couple of other songs as well. I quite enjoyed one of their encore songs (a cover). Unfortunately, I can't tell you the name of the song because I don't know it. Doh! Hopefully I'll figure it out and post it eventually.

I also really enjoyed the opening act: Amy LeVere. She plays the upright bass (when I read that on the poster outside the Brattle I was immediately more interested ... in hearing her set) and her band includes a lead guitarist (who wore a jaunty cap), a drummer (also in a jaunty cap) and a violinist/keyboardist (is that a word? "Keyboardist." why not?) Her songs were a mix of jazz, country, and blues all with a great beat and oodles of musicality.

I highly recommend listening to a few of her songs on her myspace page. I loved watching her play the bass. She practically danced with it. I'm definitely going to get her album (I somehow never have any cash on me when I attend concerts, making it impossible to properly visit the merch table. Sigh.)

So, check out Amy LeVere. Since you can't pigeonhole her into a genre, I doubt you'd ever stumble across her on the radio. But she's a great new find for me.