by Brad Roberts
But it was a very festive audience, all done up in capes, like some kind of Halloween in February, hosted by Jody Orsborn, who had gathered a huge crowd of well-wishers. The theme of Halloween, Badgers, Owls and Bats was reflected in the fine poster by Patrick Gerrity (above). Admirers of her terrific "When You Awake" blog that has done so much, in a relatively short time, to promote and inspire local country/indie bands who surround us in Los Angeles, seemed happy to have the opportunity to thank her.
But the surprise of the night for me was Breathe Owl Breathe. Difficult to pigeon-hole, they blur the border between music and theatre, performing their unique, deceptively simple compositions, while entertaining the audience with theatrical tricks, like donning wolf and bear masks to recite zoological data on the species, all concurrently, creating a hallucinatory effect.
After their set, Jody told me she first came across them performing in a forest at the Pickathon Festival 2009
in Portland, Oregon (photo at left by David Elkins). I was instantly struck by how appropriate that would have been. Their music made me feel like I was strolling through a sun-dappled, green, leafy, verdant woods. The musty smell of dew-soaked fern and moss. This set was almost a sensuous experience, enveloping all the senses. Of sight, sound, smell, taste and especially feeling. I found myself amused and moved at the same time.
I had never heard of them before and knew none of their songs, so to find it so immediately familiar and reassuring was a surprise. Micah Middaugh is their songwriter and guitarist/lead vocalist, and with Andrea Moreno-Beals on cello and voice and Trevor Hobbs on percussion, they appear to have reached that level where each performer channels the other in a seamless collaboration that feels completely natural and unforced. Possessing a comfortable and easy stage manner, Breathe Owl Breathe seemed like friends among friends, chatting amiably with the crowd, and even displaying an unruffled attitude when Micah's guitar amp quit. As a moment that is usually awkward for both audience and performer, Micah and his bandmates guided us through the process with ease as Andrea slowly bowed her cello in a quiet reverie. I also loved the moment when Trevor wandered across the stage to stand by the piano and played maybe a dozen notes before returning to his percussion, as casually as could be.
It would probably risk becoming cloying and too homey were it not for the overall sophistication of their writing and the fertility of their imaginations. Each song began as a childlike rhyme or expression that opened up to expose adult concerns wrapped in gorgeous orchestrations. It was some of the prettiest music I've heard in a long time, and I can't wait till they come back to town to play The Echo on April 21st. In the meantime I will pick up their CD's to become more familiar with their work.
Below is the crowd doing the wave, during one of the many audience-participation elements of their set..
On Tuesday, March 2, 2010, I had a ticket to see The Magnetic Fields at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre and it could not have provided a more perfect comparison to the Breathe Owl Breathe set. First of all, The Magnetic Fields have been around for nearly 20 years...and it shows. Stephin Merritt announced early in the proceedings that he doesn't like performing live... and that showed too. Not that any of it was bad, it just revealed a workmanlike approach to the concert stage and was efficient, smooth and a little deadly. Quiet songs with understated everything doesn't make for a very compelling live show.
Breathe Owl Breathe performed with an intensity and such an obvious love of performance that the non performance of The Magnetic Fields provided stark contrast. Both band mine similar stylistic territory, small fables and gentle stories that can explode with sudden deep meaning and intelligent wit. But where The Magnetic Fields appeared lethargic and perfunctory, Breathe Owl Breathe seemed almost anxious to share their art with us.
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