Bad Books >> The Troubadour [15.01.11]
Bad Books is an extension of Manchester Orchestra + Kevin Devine, or rather, their collective man-love for eachother. In fact, all of the members of share a certain kinship, a brotherhood that makes up their aptly titled record label . They’ve had a sense of this matrimony for sometime now, weathering mutiple tours together as separate bands, their songwriting authorities play off an unusual dichotomy; the always cunning and swift smooth-talking of , who crafts prose that are meticulous and thoughtful; and Andy Hull who leaves nothing for interpretation- letting the sting and the sweetness of his honesty sit with you for a while.
What I’ve learned over the last few years of working with artists, is that a good soul; one with wisdom and an honest-to-goodness sincerity about their work will always translate on stage. It’s something that commands the audience in a way that is never forced, rather, invited. Andy Hull and Kevin Devine have a way of doing that to the crowd. Whether it was the day’s UV rays splitting open their pores for the first time since they’d been snowed in for a week in Atlanta/Brooklyn, or the warmth of looking out towards a packed house- whatever it was, they were disarming and vital. They were supported by (Robert of MO’s side project) and (Andy’s side project), suggesting that they might, in fact, do everything together. Luckily, the range in their music would do us all just fine, hell, if they wanted to invent a new name under the same members, I’d welcome it.
Although Bad Books is largely pop melodies and a little revivalist rock, there are still those quintessential MO and Kevin Devine songs; where their identities don’t get lost in one another, they find their own voice. Like Kevin’s “Mesa, AZ” or Andy’s “I Begged You Everything”. They closed the night with old Kevin Devine and Manchester Orchestra songs, because that’s what you want to do when you’ve satisfied your audience; you give them anything else they could possibly want.
Bad Books- You Wouldn’t Have to Ask
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version . You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Bad Books Troubadour show: I need more of these kinds of shows in my life.
RT @fwba: Bad Books Troubadour show: I need more of these kinds of shows in my life.
RT @fwba: Bad Books Troubadour show: I need more of these kinds of shows in my life.