[ATTENDED: July 31, 2018] Phoebe Bridgers
I was supposed to see Phoebe Bridgers back in February at World Cafe Live. En route to the show I got really sick and had to bail. I was pretty bummed. But how exciting that she came back to the area just a few months later!
The opener for that show was Soccer Mommy, who I’d still like to see (although Angelica Garcia was terrific).
Phoebe Bridgers isn’t really someone I should like–she sings slow, kinda depressing songs. In fact the first song I heard from her, “Smoke Signals” was an interesting litmus test for me. I loved the sound of the song (it’s so Twin Peaks). The lyrics were great (referencing Motorhead and David Bowie) and I really liked the melody. But I found the pacing kind of slow and the song felt really long.
Then I heard “Motion Sickness” and I completely loved it. I love the lyric
I have emotional motion sickness
Somebody roll the windows down
There are no words in the English language
I could scream to drown you out
I find her voice to be very beautiful but also a little peculiar. There’s something about her delivery/enunciation that I don’t understand. It’s not an accent (she doesn’t have one when she speaks), but it’s the way she enunciates certain vowels….maybe.
Anyway, I assumed that it would be her with her guitar. But she had a whole band (and how awesome is that drum head logo for a folk singer?). She and bassist Anna Butterss (who has wonderful backing vocals) wore black suits with ties, which was cool and was nicely set off by their very blonde hair (Phoebe explained that her hair has been many different colors over the years and she likes this one).
They opened with “Smoke Signals” and it’s evident that I underestimated how good this song is, the way it stretches out. I loved the little noises and effects that drummer Marshall Vore added to the song. About two seconds into the song, the woman in front of me took a picture of Bridgers and instantly posted it online with a text overlay that said “an angel from heaven.”
It was followed by one of the saddest songs I know: “Funeral.”
I’m singing at a funeral tomorrow
For a kid a year older than me
And I’ve been talking to his dad; it makes me so sad
When I think too much about it I can’t breathe
….
And last night I blacked out in my car
And I woke up in my childhood bed
Wishing I was someone else, feeling sorry for myself
When I remembered someone’s kid is dead
And yet as you can see by many of these pictures, she smiled and laughed a lot between songs. In an interview she said of her lyrics, “I don’t consider myself a miserable person, but that’s the place I write from.”
This is totally not my type of lyric, but man she sings it so beautifully. Most of her song mix that emotion with some humor (this one wisely doesn’t). An example of her humor comes in the title of her album Stranger in the Alps which is taken from the edited-for-TV version of The Big Lebowski in which Walter’s “Do you see what happens when you fuck a stranger in the ass” is changed to “Do you see what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps?”
The show slowly picked up tempo and volume. “Georgia” sailed along with Harrison Whitford’s slide guitar echoing. And for “Would You Rather,” Whitford sang the backing vocals. She told us the song is about her brother. And she told us he long story which was pretty shockingly sad. But she assured us that all parties were fine now.
Bridgers mostly played acoustic guitar but for “Chelsea” she brought out her “cheap but cool looking” sparkly electric guitar.
She told us at some point that yes, indeed, she and Angelica went to school together. They were friends and even played in a band together back in school.
After a few more songs, she and drummer Marshall Vore duetted on Gilliam Welch’s song “Everything is Free.” I didn’t know the song but it was great and their voices sounded wonderful together.
Then she said that since she was in Asbury Park she had to play a Bruce Springsteen song. Her band left and as the crowd cheered, she played “I’m on Fire.” She’s the second performer I’ve seen cover this song recently. I wonder why they chose this particular song which I think is one of his lamer (and sexist) lyrics.
The crowd was pretty hyped for that, but we were even more psyched to hear “Motion Sickness.”
Introducing “Scott Street” she noted about this song, “they’re all sad, but this one’s especially sad.” It turns out that many of the songs are about her ex-boyfriend and current drummer Vore.
Keyboardist Nick White added some nice flourishes here and there, especially on the quieter moments.
And then Phoebe left for an encore break. I was pretty sure the set wouldn’t be very long. She has only the one album out and it’s only got 10 songs on it, after all.
She came out for the encore and played a gorgeous version of “You Missed My Heart” a cover of a song by Mark Kozelek & Jimmy LaValle that is as powerful and poignant as the songs she writes. I assumed it was her own song on the record. Midway through the song she sat down in front of the drums and sang plaintively
I asked him one more time, this time pulled out my shiv
Struck him in the back and I pulled it out slow
And I watched him fall down, and as the morning sun rose
He looked at me and said
“You missed my heart, you missed my heart
You got me good; I knew you would
But you missed my heart, you missed my heart”
I really love the way the lyrics twist that title phrase in the next verses:
I chased her up the stairs and I pinned her to the ground
And underneath her whimpering I could hear the sirens sound
I rattled off a list of all the things I missed
Like going to the movies with her and the way she kissed me
Driving into downtown Wheeling, showing her off
Backyard barbecues and reunions in the park
I said I missed her skin and when she started laughing
And while I clenched down on her wrist, she said “that’s quite a list
But there’s one thing you missed
“You missed my heart, you missed my heart
That’s quite a list, but what you really missed
You missed my heart, you missed my heart
That song meant she’d played everything off of her album. But the crowd was still buzzing and the woman in front of me kept nudging her fella hoping Phoebe would play the next song which was a romping cover of Sheryl Crow’s “If It Makes You Happy.”
It was the kind of lighthearted but earnest ending, almost a joke given how dark her songs were, that perfectly capped off the show. A show full of powerfully personal songs with a lyrical twist (and charming crowd interactions) that kept the show from being maudlin.
And of course, Bridgers’ voice sounded amazing. You could hear every whisper and breath in that quiet bowling alley.
It was crazy going from the noise of My Bloody Valentine last night to the chill folk of Phoebe Bridgers.
I’m so glad I got to see her before she really takes off.
- Smoke Signals *
- Funeral *
- Georgia *
- Would You Rather *
- Chelsea *
- Demi Moore *
- Killer *
- Steamroller
- Everything Is Free (Gillian Welch)
- I’m on Fire (Bruce Springsteen)
- Motion Sickness *
- Scott Street *
- encore
- You Missed My Heart (Mark Kozelek & Jimmy LaValle) *
- If It Makes You Happy (Sheryl Crow)
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After four days of touring Chicago, we were beat. Even though we were both looking forward to tonight’s show, we were a little wiped out by the thought of staying out, catching the EL, etc. Especially because of the weather.
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