The Weather Station / Thekla / Bristol
The show has been delayed like so many with Covid and is the first tour since the release a year ago of her fifth album ‘Ignorance’. Tamara Lindeman doesn’t speak much on stage and arrives on stage dressed elegantly in a long buttoned-up coat.
‘Ignorance’ however isn’t her most recent release as last year she released ‘How Is It That I Should Look at the Stars’, a set of beautiful and delicate piano ballads. But both albums are from the same emotionally gruelling period of fully confronting her sadness and anxiety about the climate crisis. They are, she says, about “feeling too much and feeling too darkly”.
So bringing such material to the stage can be a challenge for any artist. The drumming from Evan Cartwright is the key that holds the whole piece together and Lindeman’s vocals are a joy and dances between an almost conversational lower tone to a wonderful soprano, which is at it’s finest during Better Now, with lyrics such as “I saw the mountain, I saw it everywhere”. Parking Lot has a wonderful new wave edge to it and is the most pop-like track tonight.
I’m sure there will be much bigger venues on the tour and in The Weather Stations future, but Thekla with this great acoustics and tight, dark and intimate ambiance was just perfect tonight. The crowd pressed right up close the front of the stage, cheering, but reducing down to a hush to greet the softer ballads, especially as Lindeman singings about the struggles and difficulties we face in trying to communicate the important things in life.
This was one of those special nights, where the music does the talking…. a moment of tranquillity in a mad world. Stripped down, delicate, and beautiful. He Weather Station are a joy to see, and highly recommended.
Support tonight was provided by the incredibly talented Ami Dang and her partner. Ami, sat cross legged on the stage plays the sitar, and is accompanied by her partner who adds more sonic depth with a large box of mixed modular synths and foot pedals. Initially I thought Sitar and Synths would be an odd combination, but how wrong could I be. They complimented each other harmonically so brilliantly, and the result was a wonderful soundscape of delightful, almost zen like quality. Indeed (and I know this sound trite to say) I actually found myself standing at the front, eyes closed, just letting the sounds drift and wash over me like waves.
A really enjoyable and engaging set. If you get the chance to see Ami perform, it’s well worth your time !
