By: Andrea Myers
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Tracy Bonham - Press photo from her website
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Minnesota Public Radio's 89.3 The Current hosted a showcase of two talented female singer-songwriters at the beautiful Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul on Saturday. Martha Wainwright and Tracy Bonham played to a moderate crowd of approximately 450 people, and both gave pin-drop performances to an audience that hung onto every quivering note of their respective sets.
Tracy Bonham began her first song at precisely 8 p.m., setting up an intricate violin loop and then accompanying herself on electric guitar. Bonham's voice was unapologetic; her signature crooning alto seemed to seize each song as its own and demand unwavering attentiveness.
Going into the concert, I wasn't sure what to expect from Bonham. When I was 12 years old and just feeling out my own musical tastes, her radio hit "Mother, Mother" and corresponding rocker girl attitude were easy to idolize, and she was somewhat of a hero in my 7th grade mind. But it's been nearly a decade since Bonham could be seen screaming on MTV (and since I've watched MTV at all, for that matter), and thankfully both Bonham and I have grown up quite a bit in the time since.
Though she is currently touring to promote her newest album, blink the brightest, Bonham played a set that spanned her musical career, including her radio hit and a delicate cover of The Shins' "Kissing the Lipless." At times she would start and stop her songs to interject commentary or flip on a new effects pedal, and the imperfections in her set made her songs even more captivating and endearing. The sound and setting of the Fitzgerald was spot-on for the solo performances of the evening and the vocals came through crystal clear; it was easy to get lost in the power of Bonham's language:
the kid inside your head
keeps asking why the
world has the nerve to keep turning?
and why the sun has the balls to keep burning?
and why the moon has the gall to keep staring?
and why your heart can not stop caring stop caring stop caring?
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Martha Wainwright - Press photo by Ken Schles from her website
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After a short intermission Martha Wainwright came out, announcing that her father, Loudon Wainwright III, had been in the Cities for a performance the night before and that she had "better be good and professional." When an audience member inquired about her brother, Rufus Wainwright's whereabouts she shot back, "I don't know, read the paper, Jesus! So much pressure, don't you know?"
Despite her celebrity pedigree and obvious immersion in performance and songwriting ("I am constantly surrounded by people writing about music, sometimes it gets a little boring," she commented between songs), Wainwright is able to take advantage of her natural stage presence and is quite entertaining to watch. Despite being an acoustic performer, she often stands with her legs far apart in a classic rock star stance, swiveling her hips and marching her feet in time to a silent beat.
Wainwright played a set of songs that were mostly off her eponymous debut album from last year. Her soaring voice whimpered and crackled as she dove through the octaves of her vocal range, lending a vulnerability to her songs and making for a moving performance.
Tracy Bonham returned to the stage toward the end of the evening and the two women traded off songs, at times jumping up to harmonize or add extra instrumentation and at others sipping out of a shared bottle of wine. Bonham and Wainwright joined together for a duet on Bruce Springsteen's "Highway Patrolman," with Wainwright sounding near tears as she wailed out the lyrics and Bonham interjecting weeping violin notes.
The evening ended with the two musicians singing a cover of the Talking Heads' "This Must Be the Place," which was met with cheers and a standing ovation.
Location Info:
Fitzgerald Theater
Artist Info: Martha Wainwright, Tracy Bonham
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