Eric Bachmann, with In the Pines
Thursday, November 15
The Record Bar
Review and Photos by Keanon Liggatt
It was windy and clear out last night. Kansas City is one of the best places in the world to live in the autumn -- leaves blowing all over the city like that plastic bag from American Beauty. The dying grass and turning trees really highlight the old timey qualities of this quickly growing, onward-sprawling city that long-time residents might otherwise overlook.
It was a perfect night for a show with Eric Bachmann and Kansas City’s In the Pines.
The Record Bar’s weekly trivia show, hosted by Mike Forester, was just ending as I arrived, and between that crowd and the early birds for In the Pines and Eric Bachmann the place was already packed, making for one of the better crowds I’ve seen in a while in terms of both size and diversity. Indie Rock guys and gals, punks, some black-clad sad kids, grown men who looked like they'd come straight from the office. It was very comforting sight, given my fondness for the recordings and live shows of both acts.
In the Pines went on after a short soundcheck and played a great set of six or seven songs from their 2006 CD, including possibly my favorite track of theirs, “How to Love Her,” from the OxBlood Records First Blood compilation. I can’t get enough of the band’s dynamics, from the whisper-quiet vocals and weeping string arrangements, to the stomps and handclaps (which I can never resist joining), to the hybrid country-rock drum beats and the tasteful electric guitar. This is folk music made by and for contemporary city folk.
The dramatic component of In the Pines' music can really sweep you up with the band when it's focused and on, which becomes apparent when seated frontman Brad Hodgson begins lurching out of his chair like a ghost is yanking him upwards. While I've seen past In the Pines shows that were more spirited than last night’s -- and despite some technical glitches which forced the band to cut a new song out of the set -- I saw almost no one in the crowd that wasn’t totally enraptured by the band and nodding to the music. Some people besides me were even clapping along, making me feel less like the dorky fan that I am. My only complaint was that after seeing the band so many times, I’m itching badly for new material. The group's combined experience and talent has massive potential, and I can’t wait to see it explored further.
Clad in a vintage suit, Eric Bachmann took the stage shortly after. On this tour, he's joined by a young woman named Elin Palmer, who sings backup and plays various instruments including drums and violin. Her instrumental work fills out his songs -- which can sound too sparse when he plays solo -- but she provides the breathing room that’s not there with his full-band setup in his on-again-off-again group Crooked Fingers.
The duo opened with a really beautiful instrumental piece, but crowd, still buzzing from the volume of the house P.A. and the changeover of bands, murmured and conversed through the whole song. After a short round of applause, almost every head in the place turned toward the stage when Bachmann opened his mouth for the first time. “We’re gonna play you a Mexican folk song,” he said and proceeded to sing in Spanish.
Bachmann’s a classic, engaging troubadour despite his noisy, indie background with his former band Archers of Loaf. Archers of Loaf is one of my favorite bands from the '90s, and it has everything to do with Bachmann's songwriting and his deep, hoarse and incredibly unique voice.
Even though he employed the finger-picked nylon string guitar so prevalent on his new record, the set was impressively varied. Bachmann and Palmer played several Crooked Fingers tracks, including “New Drink for the Old Drunk,” with its simple but intense drum beat, and, to my great satisfaction, they worked in a few Archers of Loaf songs, such as the beautiful “White Trash Heroes,” rearranged for his classical guitar and the duo setup.
Including a totally solo show in Lawrence and a Crooked Fingers gig at the Hurricane, this was the third iteration of Bachmann outside of Archers of Loaf that I’ve seen, and it was easily my favorite so far. Bachmann’s tasteful songwriting has only gotten better with age, making his voice and his intentions more sincere-sounding than ever. The confidence this has brought him as a performer has crept into his old songs, too.
If I may be permitted to risk a digression, the world’s a fucked up place these days. Paper-thin entertainment conglomerates and chain restaurants are the norm. “Conservative” politicians are waging failing wars while ironically forgetting the conservative ideal of community. People with good heads on their shoulders know more about Kitchen Nightmares than about what’s going on in their own cities. This really eats at me some days, but shows like the one I saw last night give me hope. Sometimes the most progressive thing you can do as an artist is to sit back and remember where you came from and how you got to where you are. Then figure out where you're going. Bachmann lives that ideal to the full.
Bachmann: 1
World: 0
Showing 1-5 of 5
hey, my 16 year old rock playing son and I are in Kansas City looking for a good place to hear good local music. What are good places to go hear local music.
Did you see that? Did you fucking see that, folks? Eric was being drowned out by the ever growing slur of the crowd. Then, Ms. Hot Stuff on the Violin starts banging the Floor Tom as if she was channeling Ma Tucker of the Velvets via 1968. The crowd was magnetized to the front of the stage by his metal strings. It was if Eric knew that humanmonkeyzombies need something more these days than one man, one beard and a classical guitar. It's what I think is called experience. It WAS a lovely show. Eric seems to have been practicing his guitar as of late. His Archers of Loaf covers had my memory on a BulletTrain to the day 'White Trash Heroes' came out. Missed ITP but promised myself that it won't happen again.
PS:Really nice photos Keanon
Nice, descriptive review and yep i agree with the digression. Now, next time, would you please provide the comprehensive review before the show so we'll know whether to go or not? Thanks.
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