LimeWire Music Blog

Seeing Hope Sandoval in the flesh is about as rare as catching Haley’s Comet. The shy and delicate singer, who has taken eight long years in between albums, performed twice this week in New York City, to sold out crowds and somewhat cautious fanfare.

Fortunately, I was able to secure a last-minute ticket to last night’s intimate appearance at the Bowery Ballroom, eager to hear one of my very favorite female singers in person. Irish band Dirt Blue Gene kicked the evening off with a suitable set of psychedelic drones and moody guitars. I didn’t care much for their vocalist, but enjoyed their musicianship, which recalled the likes of the Dirty Three, the Black Heart Procession, and even Mazzy Star, Hope’s previous band. The similarities were so palpable, it was only fitting that the band, joined by Warm Inventions and My Bloody Valentine drummer Colm Ó Cíosóig, would serve as the backing band for Hope Sandoval’s set.

The band took to the stage in near-darkness, lit only by dim blue light and the haunting projections behind them. The crowd was dead silent as Sandoval began her set with “Blanchard,” her hazy vocals buried far too low in the mix. Though this was quickly rectified, the first three songs were plagued with tension between the band and the Bowery staff. After two more tracks, Hope stopped the show in mid-song, insisting that the sound problems be sorted out. Anxiety descended upon Sandoval as she grew increasingly upset by the second. “We soundchecked for three hours. There’s gonna be some heads chopped off,” she told both the crowd and the sound man, flabbergasted. After five minutes of tweaking, Hope stormed off the stage with a final frustrated gesture, and though it brought the show to a screeching halt, I couldn’t help but sympathize. The Warm Inventions’ stage setup was nothing terribly complicated. A few guitars, bass, drums, harmonica, a few organs, and an army of xylophones, all played with a delicate shimmer, so how could the venue not get it quite right, after three hours of soundcheck?

Though Sandoval’s tantrum forced a few attendees to turn on her (her anti-New York statement, though drenched in sarcasm, didn’t help much either), most of the crowd was ever-patient and generally forgiving, given the circumstances. After a twenty minute “intermission,” the band cautiously returned to the stage and resumed their set with “Around My Smile,” a gorgeously somber track featuring prominent percussion and reverb-drenched atmosphere. ”I’ve got it going,” Sandoval gently cooed, and with that fitting line, the band salvaged the remainder of the performance. Even though Sandoval seemed on edge for the rest of the evening, seldom engaging the crowd, the second portion of the set went off without a hitch. Thank goodness.

In light of the evening’s events, I was both surprised and relieved when the band decided to return for an encore. After concluding the main set with the transcendent “For the Rest of Your Life” (easily the best song of the night), the band performed both the tender “Satellite” and ”Feeling of Gaze,” topping the evening off on an incredibly epic and psychedelic note. Despite the early derailment, I was grateful to bask in Sandoval’s mysterious and fragile presence, a moment I had been looking forward to since “Fade Into You” first skyrocketed to popularity.

Setlist:
Blanchard
Thinking Like That
Courtin Blues
Willow [abandoned]
Around My Smile
Charlotte
Roses
Trouble
Bluebird
Susanne
For the Rest of Your Life

Encore:
Satellite
Feeling of Gaze