There are not many Famous Belgians, but Adolphe Sax is one of the lucky few. In 1841, he invented the saxophone, an unique combination of power and agility. Yet a contra-bass saxophone still weighs in at a whopping 20 kg – and only around 25 exist in the world today.
All the more reason to be absolutely amazed by bass saxophonist Colin Stetson‘s solo at the beginning of the night! First, Shara Worden (aka My Brightest Diamond) opened the evening, seated at the piano, urging us to ‘Slow Down’ with her enchanting voice. In case anyone was still unclear about the theme of the night, Colin was there to reinforce the message. Like a snake charmer, he hypnotized the audience. One minute became five, five turned into ten and then time just stopped.
With the audience already in trance, the rest of the performers could do no wrong. The melancholy that is Emily Haines played next, followed by Doveman and Holly Miranda. They were accompanied by a mix of Doug Wieselman, Marc Ribot and Skuli Sverrison, who also played solo pieces throughout the evening.
Although Doveman gave us a glimpse of his virtuosity, he was outweighed by his less technically skilled female counterparts. Holly Miranda brought back bittersweet memories of Jeff Buckley and I can only hope to get to see/hear more of her in years to come. There was no room to reminisce however, as the Blind Boys of Alabama were led on stage by miss Worden. People were obviously in the mood for a bit of soul. The mind and body were next as Lou Reed introduced his tai-chi master Ren GuangYi to the stage. He demonstrated two movements, one slow and punctuated, the other swift and sharp, partly due to the sword he was swishing around.
Then it was time again for the winning combination of Shara Worden and Colin Stetson. After a heart-wrenching torch song, miss Worden felt the need to lighten things up a little… It proved to be the highlight of the evening for me. As if suddenly possessed by the devil himself, Shara let loose and funked across the stage. At this point I should probably mention that she was a bit pregnant. Actually, a lot pregnant. Not sure if anyone else in the audience was wondering if she’d give birth right there and then, but I surely did. Not to forget Colin’s performance, who was beat-boxing (!) through his sax, in step with her vocals. You think he’d get out of breath, but it seems that man has the lungs of a Himalayan Sherpa.
Speaking about Himalaya, Laurie Anderson announced the next group was a foursome out of Tuva, a Russian republic on the border with Mongolia. In a very soft-spoken manner Laurie explained how she’d been enthralled from the very first moment by their special voices and instruments. And Chirgilchin, fresh from playing the Studio next doors, did not disappoint. What can only be described as gurgling throat singing and whistling actually sounded very peaceful. Their Buddhist chanting certainly induced a second trance in the audience.
At last it was the turn to Lou Reed himself. As he shuffled on stage, Emily Haines came out to support him – and to be honest, he looked like he could use some support. For me, their rendition of ‘Perfect Day’ was OK-ish. Don’t get me wrong, in any other line-up it would have been a highlight, but it had already been a Perfect Night so far so. Though it was a memorable moment when Lou gazed at his wife Laurie while singing “Float into a mist, with a young lady on your arm, looking for a kiss”. I swear you could even see a hint of a smile on his otherwise eternally unimpressed face.
This reviewer seemed to expect some sort of cacophony, whereas the unique line-up had me excited beforehand. So much so I bought front row tickets even, I mean where and when would you be able to catch something like this again? Even with my hopes up that high, they still managed to fulfill my expectations and then some. If only every night was Slow Night…