Sunday, June 15, 2008

Concert Review: Hayden at House of Blues Cambridge Room (June 14)

By Erin Rice

"We may be small in number, but we have a lot of heart." This was one of many tongue-in-cheek observations Saturday night from singer/songwriter, Hayden. Only 50 or so people made their way to the House of Blues Cambridge Room to catch the Ontario, Canada native, but every single person in attendance stood enthralled and engaged, calling out songs, interacting with the bands. While most musicians may prefer a larger crowd, there's something to be said for the intimate atmosphere created last night in the homey Cambridge Room. Feeding off of the positive energy, neither band disappointed.

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Hayden with Cuff the Duke (promo pic)

Opening the show was Everest, an indie rock outfit from Los Angeles. With five members, four on guitar (lead, rhythm, acoustic, bass) for most of the show, their sound, with undertones of folk, filled the performance space. Last night's show was the last of their tour with Hayden, though they continue on later this month with My Morning Jacket. While most of the crowd was there for the headliner, there was no anxiousness for Everest to vacate the stage, as their music fell very much in line with that of the rest of the night. Closing their set with a cover of Niel Young's "Everybody Knows This is Nowhere," they invited Hayden and his backing band to sing along. While it appeared obvious that the stand-ins were somewhat less familiar with the song, it was still a warm and familial ending for the appreciative openers.

Hayden performed in Dallas last April while on tour with Feist. Hitting larger locales like the Palladium Ballroom in the previous go-round, the return trip featured smaller venues and was his first time in three years backed by a full band. For fans of Canadian folk music, Saturday was an even greater treat once we realized that the "backing" band was none other than Cuff the Duke, an Oshawa band who lean more toward the country end of the folk spectrum.

The set featured a number of songs from Hayden's In Field and Town, released earlier this year on Fat Possum Records (George Mitchell, The Colour Revolt, The Black Keys), including the title track, "Where and When," "More Than Alive," "Worthy of Your Esteem," "Did I Wake Up Beside You," and "Barely Friends." Some of his earlier songs, however, were prominently featured throughout the set, including the opener, "Home By Saturday" and "Hollywood Ending" from 2004's Elk Lake Serenade.

Hayden - In Field and Town

Hayden's live sets are known for the between-song banter and this night was no exception. At various points he would begin with "This is a song that..." following with an explanation of what state of mind and place he was in while writing it. "This is a song that I wrote while on vacation at an all inclusive resort and since everything was free I took up smoking everyday and quit at the end of the week." "This is a song that is very sad." While his eyes are generally closed while playing songs, he would look into the crowd, though at nobody in particular, to address everyone. Taking the random jokes thrown around from bystanders with ease, he also took random breaks in music in stride. Earlier remarking that the Dallas humidity made his guitar "stick to him," during the following song his guitar strap unclasped from the bottom. "Oh good, it's unstuck," he joked, "I thought I would have to sleep with it." Chuckles pervaded the crowd as the night's banter felt more like conversation than just random remarks.

Following "Did I Wake Up Beside You," band and singer exited the stage, but the tell-tale house lights remained dim as the crowd stayed firmly in their spots. Reentering no more than a minute later, Hayden took the stage alone, playing first on the acoustic guitar before moving to the keyboard for one of his better known tunes, "Bass Song," from Skyscraper National Park (2001). While the backing band added an element of fullness to many of his earlier songs, it was a welcome departure that he played "Bass Song" as it was written, to feel the initial intensity of the song through his airy vocals and heavily played, disjointed piano notes. When the band rejoined him, they played two final songs, asking the crowd and Everest to sing along for "Carried Away."

As the crowd swayed, danced, and sang the set closed and all exited the stage to an applause that felt far more than 50 strong. While much of Dallas missed the night of music, this small group, enjoying the intimacy and interaction that comes with such a performance, were secretly, if not selfishly, pleased to have the experience all to ourselves.

Related stories

• Pegasus News Week in View: Juneteenth edition (June 19, 2008)

See more stories in:

• Arts > Popular Music > Alternative / Indie
• Arts > Popular Music > Folk

Comments

DC Anonymous

YEEaaahh, mumbly touque rock from the 90s. Killer. I recall seeing this guy on some wintery campus probably a few weeks apart from Buck65. Strange. No Bob Log III, though.

3 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )