Sneaking in from Big Sur, CA by way of South Dakota, Suzanne Vallie brought her wistful lyricism and wispy melodies to the Shubert Theatre on Wednesday, November 13th to open for Boston-favorite, Adrianne Lenker. Sharing her appreciation for the time spent in the city over the past two days, Vallie told a charming story of dogs chasing each other through the leaves, with the little pooch chasing the big dog, adding, “I learned something today…about perseverance.” The audience awed at this little quip as she went into another calming piano number. Playing a selection of delightful piano-driven songs, Suzanne Vallie made for the perfect opening to Lenker’s signature finger-picking style.
(Suzanne Vallie)
Woodsy and whimsical fans settled in for night two of back-to-back sold out shows as Lenker introduced herself with a sense of gratitude and genuine appreciation. Throughout the crowd, audience members could be heard whispering how they loved or adored her. Opening with the powerfully gentle Los Angeles, her vocals reverberated throughout the Shubert’s 114-year-old walls, singing her poetic lyrics, “The picture box is full/And we are kissing in a fistful of fragments falling down/I throw them up and watch them hit the ground like snow.” Throughout her set, Lenker’s kind and gentle personality showed through her banter – laughing when a tuning wasn’t exactly right, or a lyric was missed. There couldn’t have been a more loving and supporting audience to giggle at these little incidents. She made truth-stained jokes about the beauty of live music – the novelty of sharing this space, and the joy of being alive for these moments.
There was a sense of giddiness that floated between Adrianne and her audience. Halfway through her 15-song set, she brought out one of her closest friends, Mary Elizabeth Remington to play Mary’s song Tuesday. Lenker spoke of the beauty of spending some time on the stoop of a home she and Mary once lived, laughing when the audience failed to see the weight of that, and repeating it to herself. Memories like these are so often made sentimental by the passing of time – something Lenker’s music does well to honor without the bittersweet tinge of nostalgia. Her lyrical reflections are a touch of gratefulness wrapped in the comfort of a harmony. Sharing this joy on stage, Mary stepped off to make room for friends Nick Hakim on piano and Josefin Runsteen on violin. The addition of Hakim and Runsteen gave a fullness to the somber tenderness Lenker creates.
(Adrianne Lenker)
Taking the crowd through the sorrow of a relationship turned sour with Sadness as a Gift off her latest release Bright Future reminded folks of the way a changing partnership can be celebrated. Pulling the audience out of whatever introspective place Sadness may have brought them, Lenker and Co., had fun fooling around with the John Prine-esque Once a Bunch. With small laughs and big smiles, the crew bowed out to a standing ovation before coming back for one more. Delicately played and harmony-filled, Lenker left off with Real House, leaving the crowd at once in love and inspired by the reflective lyrics, “Mama, what happened? I never thought we'd go this long/Now 31 and I don't feel strong/And your love is all I want.” What maternal love she may lack was hopefully made good during a second standing ovation as the audience clapped to Lenker’s confessional magnificence.