Trying to make Bolachas more like a “webzine” and less like a deposit of free album downloads, mp3s and video embeds, I’ve decided to start doing reports of live shows; we did some festivals in the past (Primavera Sound, Milhões de Festa, Paredes de Coura) and some proper concerts (I remember writing about a Tindersticks concert at Estarreja, the first Roky Mountains Tour in Madrid with Magnolia Electric Co., John Doe & the Sadies and the Handsome Family…) that unfortunately were lost on one of our countless, non-backuped server crashes and whatnot (except for that Milhões de Festa massive preview+report last summer). This time, we went to Guimarães’ (European Cultural Capital in 2012) best venue – and certainly among the best in the whole country and, why not, the Iberian Peninsula) – Centro Cultural Vila Flor, a renewed congress hall who was once part of the Minho university to see one of the best songwriters alive, Will Oldham (AKA Bonnie “Prince” Billy). And this is how it went.
Having seen Oldham a little bit more than a year ago in a different city, I thought I would be presented with a similar show; not much changed in his sound between the last two proper records, The Wonder Show of the World and the brand new Wolfroy Goes to Town – except for the fact that the latter has better songs in it. I couldn’t be more wrong.
His live band is almost completely different – Shahzad Ismaily, who played bass guitar last year and produced Wolfroy Goes to Town was missing, being replaced by a double bass player; Susanna Wallumrød was replaced by Angel Olsen on backing vocals (a natural change, since she did the backing vocals on Wolfroy). Emmett Kelly (or should I say The Cairo Gang) was still playing lead guitar and the live band was completed by a keyboardist (Ben Boye) who also played the harmonium. Although I absolutely love Ismaily, I couldn’t help but think this lineup was way more impressive; they almost sound like a Willie Nelson backing band or something. (If you don’t like Willie Nelson and thought that was an insult, you probably don’t like music at all. Just saying.) If we account for the fact that Oldham was wearing a suit instead of the spectacular orange trousers he wore last year, we could call this the Bourgeois Bonny Band or something along those lines. Playing bourgeoisie-infused covers of Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s own songs. And no, no, again, that’s not an insult.
Although some versions felt a bit wacky at first (“I Don’t Belong to Anyone” and “I See a Darkness“, for example) they weren’t exactly bad; just too different from what someone who listened to those songs countless times was used to. My other concern was that poor little Angel Olsen (what a great voice!) had nothing to do but dance during most of the show. Other than that, there’s not a single complaint one could do about this band and the concert. A thousand kudos for the chosen set list. They started with “No Match”, the perfect starter from Wolfroy; the next-to-last song of the main set was the other best song from the new album: “Black Captain”, a long, slow number, among the best work Oldham came up with in the last five years or so. But there was more to it: Oldham revisited his Palace years more than one would expect (“No Gold Digger”, “Pushkin” and the fantastic “New Partner”, just before the encore), went through a myriad of recent and not-so-recent albums to rediscover gems like “Beast for Thee”, “Love Comes to Me” or “I See a Darkness”, but it wasn’t until he played fan (read: “my”) favorite “You Win”, a B-side from a 7” released last year (along with The Wonder Show of the World) that yours truly was sure that this would be an unforgettable evening and not just another good show by someone who can do no wrong. Olsen was finally given a chance to shine during “Quail and Dumplings”, Wolfroy Goes to Town’s first single, but it wasn’t until the encore (when Bonnie “Prince” returned with a salmon pink shirt and a cap, something that resembled the good ol’ Bonny I saw last year) that she had her biggest opportunity to show her voice’s worth, singing a magnificent duet with Oldham, “You Want That Picture”, the only time they visited Lie Down in the Light.
But hey: there’s still no match for good ol’ Bonny, so let him be.
Setlist:
No Match
Love Comes to Me
I Don’t Belong to Anyone
Beast for Thee
Where Wind Blows
No Gold Digger
Island Brothers
Quail and Dumplings
Time to Be Clear
I See a Darkness
Teach Me to Bear You
After I Made Love to You
You Win
Pushkin
Someone Coming Through
We Are Unhappy
Pack Up Your Sorrows (cover)
Black Captain
New Partner
—
You Want That Picture
