Thursday, July 7, 2016

Paradiso's Musical Paradise: Courtney Barnett


Indie-rock singer Courtney Barnett is a 28 year old Australian artist who put on quite a show in Paradiso, Amsterdam’s popular music venue and cultural center. She performed with her band on July 5th, 2016 as her first hall performance for the tour of her debut album, “Sometimes I Sit And Think And Sometimes I Just Sit ”.
Paradiso, exterior

The concert hall, Paradiso, is a three-story renovated church that was originally built in 1879. The church itself is of romanesque revival architecture, with features such as a number of round arches above windows on the facade of the building, thick walls, and ornate entryways.
Inside the venue, lime-green ceilings with industrial light fixtures set a playful mood upon entrance, and bright, ornate white railways line the perimeter of each story. The contrast between the traditional exterior and modern interior is energizing. Younger and older adults comprised the audience and packed the hall from the ground level up. I stood on the topmost balcony to get a more expansive view of the entire hall. The rectangular stage below was simple and bare with the exception of some sound equipment and instruments. Behind the stage hung a large, billowing white sheet—a backdrop for visual effects that would later become alive with colorful, stylized animation to accompany each song. Some of these visuals were cartoons that followed the story of lyrics closely, while other visuals were evolving 70’s-style patterns.
The simple, almost bare stage with a white backdrop, later used for visuals
The packed concert hall with white railways lining each balcony level

The instrumentation of Barnett’s band was simple and included elements typical of a rock band: vocals, a lead guitar, a bass guitar, and drums. Dressed in casual, grungy clothing, Barnett commanded both vocals and lead guitar while two men on drums and bass guitar provided backing vocals.
Garage-rock revival came to mind when listening to the first few songs, as, along with the instrumentation, the band’s energetic sound accompanied aggressive, witty lyrics that capture everyday thoughts. For example, the opening song, “Dead Fox”, criticizes consumerism with interspersed guitar and punchy, comical lyrics:

Jen insists that we buy organic vegetables
And I must admit I was a little skeptical at first
A little pesticide can’t hurt

Barnett’s vocals are not what a first-time listener would expect; while often delivered through traditional song, a decent amount of the delivery is spoken. Many of her wittiest observations are delivered in her trademark deadpan voice. Barnett takes liberty with the timing of her remarks, and while her lyrics were often hard to hear due to the loud dynamics, she delivered them in an engaging manner. However, I wish I understood what she was saying; I found myself looking up lyrics to each song on my phone to fully appreciate their creativity and wit. This, however, is a consequence of the venue’s acoustics and is not a fault of the performers. The large amount of people packed into one space combined with the emphasis placed on instrumentation made it difficult to engage with the lyrics.
There was more than enough variety in Barnett's set, which increased as the show progressed. The first few songs were in 4/4 time and were performed at a fast tempo, but were later contrasted by “Small Poppies”, a slower-tempo piece in 6/8 time. The dynamics were somewhat variable; both within songs and between them. Within the songs, the dynamics were predictable. Verses were mezzo-forte, and choruses, with denser drum and bass rhythms, were forte. Between songs, however, I was impressed by how quiet the band was able to get considering the venue and the audience’s own vocal participation. Additionally, while instrumentation throughout her set remained the same, Barnett used different accessories with her guitar, such as a delay pedal and a distortion for a few of her songs, which contributed variety to an otherwise homogenous sound.
Courtney Barnett performing "Scotty Says", notice the visual patterns projected behind the stage

The songs themselves became predictable after the first thirty seconds or so; they followed the classic verse-chorus structure common to many rock songs. The chords were fairly simple as well, hovering over four to six chords for each song. The repetitive verse-chorus structure, along with the simple chords, was great for a new listener as it became easy to participate and sing along. It was also clear that Barnett loved engaging with her audience, which furthered the inclusive atmosphere.
Not all shows are perfect. Partway through her set, Barnett’s guitar strap broke. I didn’t even realize what had happened— Barnett made it seem planned. She embraced the accident and briefly poured her energy into stronger vocals instead. I only realized what happened when a stagehand ran onstage with a replacement. The absence of the lead guitar made me realize how much dynamic and melodic power it added, and although I liked Barnett’s vocals I was relieved when the guitar rejoined the band as it added a layer of complexity to her performance.
The colorful venue, the simplicity of song structure, and the enthusiasm of both the band and of the audience made a welcome introduction to Barnett's music. On top of this, the fun lyrics, animations, and no-frills nature of Barnett's band kept listeners engaged; it was easy to find at least a handful of songs to enjoy given the diversity of the set.

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