Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions @ Music Box

[photo courtesy of Luz Gallardo]

With most of the stage shrouded in darkness, Hope Sandoval’s intimate show at the Music Box Theatre became more about the band providing a soundtrack to the numerous short films playing behind them than an actual live performance. While Sandoval was completely bathed in shadows during the band’s set, the focus instead fell on the subtle, somber music, and the colorful films that were projected on a screen behind the stage. It was rather theatrical, not only because of the cozy, vintage surroundings, but also because the music was so tied to the visuals on screen. The rest of the six-piece band, which also featured Colm Ó Cíosóig from My Bloody Valentine on drums, were faintly visible under pale, muted lighting, while Sandoval could barely be seen, even from a few feet away (which is purely intentional by the singer, who prefers to “go into myself, close myself off,” during a performance). Which is just as well, for rather than focusing on her intense beauty, the emphasis was instead placed on her gorgeous voice, which was able to soar in the small venue during their 90 minute set, and carried each and every song they played out of the darkness and into the hearts of the receptive audience.

[photo courtesy of Luz Gallardo]

The group started off their set in the same way that their exquisite new album Through The Devil Softly begins: with the hushed beauty of “Blanchard.” Accompanied by a subtle acoustic guitar Sandoval was able to inject the song with a somber, wistful mood that carried throughout the set. The song was partnered with a grainy film of a bride and groom dancing, and that dancing motif permeated many of the movies that were projected during the performance, lending the songs a bouncy, ethereal quality. The delicate “Thinking Like That” was next, and while their live performance lacked the haunting violin featured on the studio version, it still managed to transcend the darkness of the theater and convey a sense of honesty and vulnerability within Sandoval’s songs that was palpable. Even if the singer couldn’t be seen, she could certainly be felt. A wonderful cover of Bert Jansch’s “Courting Blues” followed, and was slowed down and nearly unrecognizable at first, but it ended up being a heartfelt, poignant version that was a surprising addition to a set that otherwise only featured tracks drawn from both of the Warm Invention’s albums. It also featured a harmonica solo by Sandoval that only served to add to the ambiance of the tender song.

[photo courtesy of Luz Gallardo]

After a gorgeous version of “There’s A Willow,” the painfully shy Sandoval uttered a quick thank you—her first words of the evening to the audience—as the band eased into a floaty version of “Around My Smile” from 2001′s Bavarian Fruit Bread. The group then shrunk to a four piece for the plaintive “Charlotte,” which was a spare, stirring version augmented by Sandoval’s subtle work on the xylophone. “Wild Roses” featured a psychedelic, kaleidoscopic video that fittingly featured roses, and the hypnotizing film only added to the wistful nature of the song, which again featured Sandoval on harmonica. The bluesy elegance of “Trouble” was next, and was the highlight of the set. It featured a punch and a sinister mood that brought a welcome energy to the performance. It featured a gorgeous, extended coda that highlighted Sandoval’s wispy vocals, all while an astronaut was dangling wildly while transposed in some ancient horror movie on the screen behind the stage. The visuals only added to the ominous nature of the song, and proved to be quite a captivating audio/visual combination. The portentous air of the set continued with “Bluebird” and its evocative lyrics warning of “a devil in your skies.” It was lush and stirring, and decidedly kept up the momentum built by “Trouble.”

[photo courtesy of Luz Gallardo]

“Susanne” seemed to be a playful track for the band to play with Sandoval and Ó Cíosóig harmonizing on the chorus, bringing a bit of lightheartedness to an otherwise solemn song. It also featured Ó Cíosóig playing a smaller xylophone instead of the drums, and Sandoval chiming in with a splendid harmonica solo. The show had indeed found its spark at this point, and that spirit continued into the lengthy main-set closer “For The Rest Of Your Life,” which found the band really stretching out their sound and experimenting with discord and atmospherics during the extended fade out to the song. And after another quick thank you from Sandoval, the band was off for what turned out to be an overly prolonged encore break. After an interminable amount of time (and cheering from the audience) the band returned to the stage, with Sandoval explaining the long break by saying, “We wish you all could’ve had a glass of wine with us.” But all was forgiven after the band launched into an achingly beautiful rendition of “Satellite.” The last song of the night was the elegiac “Feeling Of Gaze,” which again highlighted the tie between the films playing behind the band and the music itself, as a ballerina danced fearlessly while images of fire were transposed over her, with the projectionist intently raising the image of the ballerina above the curtain containing the screen, then lowering her down into the fire as the song grew in intensity. It was a nice visual complement to the moody music being played on stage, and served its purpose well because there really wasn’t anything else to watch due to the darkness on stage.

[photo courtesy of Luz Gallardo]

Some people who prefer animated, engaging performances from their artists might have been disappointed by Hope Sandoval being shrouded in darkness and remaining detached from the audience during the entirety of her performance. I, however, was captivated by the haunting music being generated on stage as well as the intricate films being projected on the screen behind the band. It was a proficient marriage between both aural and visual entertainment, and one that served to complement each other considerably. This intentional set up shifted the focus from what the band was doing to what they were playing, and allowed the wistful music being generated to remain front and center, where it should be. The songs, as well as Sandoval’s enchanting voice, were what we were all there for, and the musc truly soared during this lovely, intimate performance.

Setlist:
Blanchard
Thinking Like That
Courting Blues (Bert Jansch cover)
There’s A Willow
Around My Smile
Charlotte
Wild Roses
Trouble
Bluebird
Susanne
For The Rest Of Your Life
Satellite (encore)
Feeling Of Gaze (encore)

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Also: Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions “Through the Devil Softly” Review