While there are no guarantees in rock and roll, a BoDeans show at the Vogue is something that rarely fails to inspire an audience with the joy of rock and roll. And there’s always a little bit of muted pain too, because just below the surface of many of Kurt Nuemann’s and Sammy Llanas’ songs are bits of melancholy, rejection and loss.
And because this is a band that may deserve a little more success than the music business has given them.
The two singer/songwriters, who are the BoDeans, pulled into Indianapolis on Friday night, and had, by the end the 16-song, 110-minute show, given the mostly 40-something roots rock fans a reminder of where the buzz started for the band. The songs and music off of the band’s 1986 debut album “Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams” carried the most musical weight and lyrical resonance, and the bands performance helped remind why that album deserved it’s remastering and re-release earlier this year.
Opening with the ethereal “Pretty Ghost” from 2008’s “Still “album, the band proceeded to then knock out two from 1993’s “Go Slow Down”, with the blending of the singer’s voices shining on “Idaho” and then getting the audience bouncing with “Texas Ride Song”, highlighting Bukka Allen’s accordion playing. He was featured prominently on that instrument throughout the evening, giving a uniqueness of sound to add to the harmonies and Kurt’s’s guitar playing, always a integral part of the gig.
After “Everyday”, from their new record, came a surprising early set inclusion of one the band’s regular show closers. “Good Work”, from 1989’s “Home” with it’s Chuck Berry riff and breakneck pace was the first spot for the band to get sweaty and dirty, hear the drums crashing, and crank both the crowd and band energy levels.
Subtly, the sound mix was short of great. While the band would end up trumping what Lucinda Williams had done with her encore three days earlier at the same venue, her house sound mix was superior to the less distinct and at times boomy sound on Friday; simply not as crisp for the BoDeans, though never bad enough to hinder the performance. I moved around to numerous spots in the theatre, searching for a “best” spot. To the right of the soundboard proved to be as good as it got. Within 15 rows of the stage, the volume coupled with band and crowd energy was also a good position, making up for nuances not in the mix.
From LHSD, Sammy introduced “Still the Night” by asking how many had seen them before (big cheer), thanked the audience for being their “little family on the road” and promptly jumped into the song that never fails to get a BoDeans crowd excited. Smartly, they dropped in a lyrical and musical snippet from “Hey Pretty Girl”, from their 1996 “Blend” effort, and was a sweet little teaser for hardcore fans who picked up on it. By the end of the song, the band was again chugging hard, something they did throughout the night – extending the songs, not with noodling, but finding another rock and roll gear.
“She’s a Runaway”, also from the first album, was recast at half speed, as Sammy, who began the song slapping his palm on his acoustic guitar strings, told the audience after playing it that “sometimes Mary needs a new dress”.
Following the sweet harmony showcase of “Stay On”, it was again back to the first record for “Fadaway” and then the sugary melody of “First Time” from their new record – It’s a pretty pop song, memorable in it’s simplicity.
After the slow dance version of “Naked”, they played “Feed the Fire”. The rocker from “Go Slow Down” is usually overshadowed by the same album’s more familiar upbeat burner “Closer to Free”, but on this night provided a podium for the band to drop pieces of classic rock songs onto the end of it. “Gimme Shelter”, “In the Midnight Hour”, “Gloria”, “Light My Fire” and Sly Stone’s “I Want to Take You Higher” found places on the back end. The aforementioned “Closer to Free” closed the set, giving the 600 or so at the Vogue a pairing to keep them wanting more.
Unlike Williams’ trio of encore songs that had fallen a bit flat, the BoDeans used their set coda to do what Sly Stone wanted.
“Misery”, one that sits in it’s groove and burns, kept the connection between band and crowd working, with a spot-on audience effort, shouting back on the call-and-response chorus.
“You Don’t Get Much”, from the excellent “Home” record started with Kurt’s best Edge/U2 channeling (the group had opened for U2 ‘s stadium tour before recording the album) and ended with Kurt and Sammy facing each other at center stage, then heading to stand on the front monitors. They did the same with “Good Things”, shredding the song as they finished, and again six inches from each other’s face before talking, smiling and finally simultaneously jumping up and down to the beat to bring the tune to a crashing finale.
Sam and Kurt and the rest of the band were having obvious fun, sweaty and grinning at the end. It’s what we have come to expect from the BoDeans. They delivered again.
Vogue
BoDeans Try to Recover Lost Opportunity
There’s a moment, early in every show, when the BoDeans connect with the crowd. It might be during the slow chorus of “You Don’t Get Much.” Or the refrain, “I might never, no never let go – whoa-oh” from “Still the Night.” But sometime during the first few minutes of every BoDeans show I’ve been to, fans will start to sing loudly. And that’s when I know the rest of the night is going to be good.
The BoDeans – the band that made Waukesha, Wis., famous – are songwriters Kurt Neumann and Sammy Llanas. Always known for performing a soul-stirring rock and roll show, they had a fluke hit song (“Closer to Free”) in 1995 before being derailed by a lawsuit in the middle of what would be their only real shot at bigger things. Still trying to make up for lost opportunity, they were back in Indy for a show at the Vogue June 12.
“We have played a lot of shows all these years at the Vogue. And always had a lot of just crazy, crazy packed houses full of people – always had a good time,” Neumann, on the phone from Austin, Texas, says when asked about Indianapolis. “And I think of [drummer] Kenny [Aronoff], because he played a lot of shows with us and he is from there.”
Out from under struggles against management and record companies, Neumann says they have been making an effort to release more music and push forward. The band has become a part of the eclectic Austin music community after spending 30 years in Waukesha. Through the move and all the legal tumult, the band has never stopped performing, but it has been more difficult to find the time and resources to record albums.
“We spent about eight years where management kind of sat and didn’t do much. We went through a big fiasco around 2004,” Nuemann remembers. “We had been dropped by Warner around 1998. My perspective was, ‘Let’s go get another label.’ But the management kind of went on hiatus and we could never get them to work again, though we were going into the studio to make demos because we kept hearing they weren’t good enough.
“It got to a point I finally said to Sam that we were going to have to take things in our own hands. We knew there was going to be big litigation, but we had to go through it to break free and start releasing stuff again.”
The band’s first album, Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams, was recently re-released. The re-mastered version with bonus tracks helps to put the band’s legacy in perspective.
“The record had always had a lot of warmth and not many people heard it on vinyl because they were buying CDs by then. I just wanted to take another shot at it,” Neumann says.
T-Bone Burnett, mostly unknown at the time, produced the album, long before he became one of the top-shelf producers in rock music.
“I think he likes us because of the authenticity of sound. We also seem to have a common sense of humor,” Neumann says. “There are a handful of people out there who go up on stage and sing songs. And it’s not about a bunch of frills or not about image at all. The BoDeans have been kind of an imageless band – by choice really. We just want it to be about the music. We are not necessarily going to bring a lot of attention to him.”
The re-release is paired with a concert video, recorded in 1985 at the legendary First Avenue in Minneapolis just weeks before the band signed to Slash records.
“These people contacted us, and had found a bunch of footage down in the basement of First Avenue from a concert we had done in 1985,” he says. “It was right around that time we were talking to the labels and talking about hooking up with T-Bone.”
While the extended hiatus in the late ’90s prevented some projects from being realized, since 2002, the band has released a live album, two studio albums and a live acoustic record through their Web site. The album, Still, released in 2008, reunited the band with Burnett.
“I think we will be remembered for our singing and harmonies and the sound we created together. It was one of the things that defined us and when you heard it you knew it was us,” Nuemann says. “And the live shows were also important, because of the energy we tried to create. So that would be a great thing to be remembered for too.”
Concert Review- Lucinda Williams at the Vogue – Indianapolis
Sliding into the spotlight as she walked on stage at the Vogue Theatre on Tuesday night (6.9.09), Lucinda Williams, with her now brunette-not-blonde hair, a flowing white long-sleeved blouse matched with a black vest, seemed relaxed. Maybe it was the confidence of supporting an excellent album (“Little Honey”) on the tour. Or maybe it’s the knowledge that her backing band (Buick 6) brings the rock and roll goods.
Or most likely, she knows just how good her songs really are.
Over the next two hours, Williams proceeded to rip through 25 songs from her stellar catalogue, and magic happened when it clicked; the band rocked, her glorious voice purred and shouted, and both left room for the music to breathe.
The back half of the night was full of energy, scorching guitars, slamming drums and Williams’ high and lonesome rock voice. While many of her terrific relationship songs were loaded into the front of the show, there was the large crowd’s palpable, growing desire for the band and singer to catch fire together and elevate the energy level in the room.
After opening the concert with “I Just Wanted to See You So Bad”, and the island-flavored “Big Red Sun Blues”, both off her self-titled 1988 album, it was evident her band (who also played 35 minutes of rocking and nuanced instrumentals as the opening act) was well suited for Williams. They push her, just as her own lyrics and unique voice pull the band into moments of magic. They need each other.
“Can’t Let Go” was a pleaser, one of a half dozen songs she would play from “Car Wheels on a Gravel Road”, her 1998 masterpiece that still stands as her crowning achievement. “Concrete and Barbed Wire” (also from that album) followed, giving the crowd gospel in the music and falsetto in her singing.
“Learning How to Live”, from 2007’s “West” record was a highlight of this early part of the show, with well-placed Hammond B3 keys, and Williams’ signature tough-as-hell-but still fragile delivery, The song contained echoes of Bruce Springsteen’s “Fade Away”. It was beautifully executed.
The new record’s “Tears of Joy” paid homage to a Stax/Al Green/Memphis groove and also got the first big audience response when the band ripped into the instrumental sections and turned the tune into fiery rock and roll, grabbing the crowd’s attention. “Are You Alright?” was beautiful, sung as a would-be lover pining for someone long gone, while “Ventura” had a 60’s pop feel, complete with a sublime Beach Boys-influenced background vocal.
Two off the “Gravel Road” record followed; “Jackson” was performed with stand-up bass and the anthemic “I Lost It” featured a vocal performance from Williams that one-upped the recorded version. At 56, Lucinda’s vocals sound better than ever live, and she wasn’t fearful of pushing her voice as the band roared behind her. The only time she was tough to hear was between songs late in the show when the crowd’s appreciative applause and screams drowned her out. When that happened, her big smile revealed that the noise was OK with her.
As Indianapolis was shown by Williams’ performance, two strengths head the list of her virtues as an artist: the consistent sexiness of her words and songs, and the depth of her material, both in individual tunes, and the cumulative effect of her output over the past 20 years.
Calling “Drunken Angel”, (another off of “Car Wheels on Gravel Road”) her version of Bob Seger’s “Beautiful Loser”, she swayed left to right and up and down as she played her guitar. The new album’s “Little Rock Star” had the feel of an epic as the momentum built.
Faith was rewarded as the show took flight over final seven songs of the set, beginning with the chiming “la la la’s” of “Out of Touch” from her 2001 album “Essence”, and into her recent single “Real Love”. Next came the driving country rocker “Real Live Bleeding Fingers and Broken Guitar” from 2003’s “World Without Tears”, followed by the great, sexy kiss-off of “Come On”. That led into a roaring “Honey Bee” from her new album, which had the musicians in a tight circle at center stage, pounding their way through the rocker.
“Righteously” closed the set, featuring a buzzsaw guitar and lyrics showcasing essential Lucinda Williams attitude: honesty, a bit of anger, and always hinting that she’s one bad ass chick who can be yours if you could only figure out how to love both her charms and daggers.
The three-song encore proved a bit anti-climactic, saved by the AC/DC cover of “It’s a Long Way to the Top” that’s the last cut on her “Little Honey” record. A nearly full Vogue theater, damn good for weeknight, was acknowledged by Williams, obviously enjoying, and seemingly a bit surprised by, her crowd’s screaming warmth.