Thursday, May 10, 2007

A Different Light

Kristin Hersh played a show last night with a band, including strings. It was only when we got there that my friend Kevs said to me, "I've never seen her play her solo stuff with a band before."

Then I thought, "Oh yea... this should be good." And it was.

The show was at the El Rey, which was a little on the big side for the evening but still contained a nice crowd of enthused fans. Some overly enthused - obviously, they'd never made it to a KH show and they were STOKED! Personally, I think it's great when someone is that thrilled to be at a show, especially when it's in such a jaded town as LA.

The tunes were mainly from her latest, Learn to Sing Like A Star, and I was happy to hear my favorite from that CD ("Wild Vanilla") right off the bat. The band sounded strong and dreamy... rather, somewhat nightmarish at times. There is a brooding and intensity to her music which was brought out in a completely new way with the full band... and strings. The strings were pretty spectacular, especially on "Sundrops" which was nothing but cello and guitar and vocals. Perfect.

Anyone missing the Throwing Muses would appreciate this particular tour - along with anyone who just wants to see Kristin Hersh rock out without blasting them through the walls like her 50 Foot Wave project is known to do from time to time. So if you haven't already missed this tour, check the website and see if you can still catch it - cuz you should.
(This pic was actually taken elsewhere, but you get the idea.)