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Seems like the
whole of British Columbia is very proud of internationally acclaimed
country-rock singer-songwriter Neko Case. Sure, she's originally from
Tacoma, Washington but she made her name as a punk-pop drummer in Vancouver
and that's enough to keep the hype hyper. The local media are inviting
the city's inhabitants to celebate Neko as the saviour of "real county
music". Which is nonsense, because her music is as much polished indie rock as it is trad country. It's probably simply the most accessible manifestation of that weird '90s sub-genre "alt.country". Neko's second LP Furnace Room Lullaby is no doubt the sole countryfied CD in agreat many indiecentric collections. Having said that, it was pleasing to see some people at Richard's who looked like... erm real country fans. Interestingly, support act Carolyn Mark, gave every impression of being a lifelong Nashville devotee. Whereas Neko brings indie-rock style to country material, Mark's set was steeped in C'n'W lore/mannerisms and walked a thin line between authenticity and toungue-in-cheek. She seemed perfectly comfortable with that but while her classic country/early rock'n'roll set was very competent it was pretty unremarkable. Not so Neko Case and Her Boyfriends. Neko has charisma most singers would kill for and a voice that could shiver a spine at 40 paces. As soon as the band launched headlong into their set, the desire to not believe the hype melted clean away. Neko delivered half the set in a fetching bra-and-skirt combo because she felt fat in her dress. She never looked self-conscious about it and and it never felt like cheap titillation. Respect! Normally I like my country-rock mellow and melancholy but even the most hoe-downable numbers took my fancy on this occassion. Still, it was on the minor-key title track to the new LP that things really took off - Neko's voice stretching beyond the coventions of both country and rock to become a truly haunting banshee wail. The set was sadly
truncated as Richard's had a club night scheduled for the rest of the
evening. As the crowd of mainly white college kids filed out of the
show, a row of Asian and Black kids made their way into the club. This
was a disturbing reminder of North America's increasingly race-divided
society, particlulary in the light of indie fans growing enthusiasm
for country - the whitest music on earth - and rejection of futuristic
hip hop innovations. The solution? Neko should make a record with Method
Man. This would: (i) kick ass; (ii) bridge an important socio-musical
divide; (iii) remind us how shit Texas are. Only then can the healing
begin. |
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