(all photos by Keith Klenowski)
It’s a big week for live music here in Cincinnati, and I just can’t sit on the sidelines and watch all of these great shows pass by. So despite feeling a little lazy I made the trek down to Southgate House in Newport last night to check out John Vanderslice and the opener The Tallest Man On Earth.
Upon entering the Southgate House, a couple songs into the set of ‘The Tallest Man’ I was impressed quickly with the enviroment layed out in front of me. The ballroom floor was strewn with tables and chairs, not an unusual scene for a show these days, but the majority of the attendees were magnetized to the stage, standing and watching the performance. Kristian Matsson, aka The Tallest Man On Earth, was on stage alone, with a lone spotlight and marking his spot on stage and and toting nothing more than his acoustic guitar. All of the instruments that would later be in use by John Vanderslice and his band were there, but so not to distract from the focal point, were covered in black sheets. This provided an appropriate setup for the heart aching, dust bowl influenced folk ballads from The Tallest Man On Earth.
The Tallest Man On Earth
He put forth a great set, including most of the tunes from his record Shallow Grave, along with a few bonus tunes as well. Most impressive though was his voice, which I certainly had come to appreciate from repeated listens to the record, but really fell for after hearing it live. This is not a meek and mild hushed solo act similar to Sam Beam of Iron & Wine, but rather a singer that at times attacks the microphone like a young Johnny Cash and growls through some parts of his folk songs, showing off his range and versatility.
After the performance Kristian gave his thank you’s to those in attendance, and then proceeded to shake the hands of all the attendees closest to the stage, maybe thats how they do it in Sweden?
John Vanderslice and his band took the stage next, and despite a fairly lackluster crowd, handled the night like the true professionals they are. Pulling songs from previous albums like Pixel Revolt (”Trance Manual”) and even starting the show with the full sounds of “Tablespoon Of Codeine” from Emerald City, you could quickly tell they were not there to mess around.
John Vanderslice
Towards the middle of the set, John excused the rest of the band temporarily and played a couple tunes solo as well, including a song from this recent album done with John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats, which was being sold on their tour together, “Scorpion Rising”. And of course, there were some of the standouts from his current album, Romanian Names littered throughout the set, most enjoyable for me was probably “D.I.A.L.O” and “Sunken Union Boat.” Although I was secretly hoping to hear “Carina Constellation” which was absent from the set.
In it’s simplest form, watching the John Vanderslice performance was not the mesmerizing spectacle we saw earlier in the night from The Tallest Man On Earth, but it’s hard to do anything but respect and enjoy the quality and consistency of Vanderslice’s music. That said, I think it was one of those nights where the crowd was not really doing their part, not giving back the positive energy that the band was desperatly trying to push forward. Nonetheless, a great set from the nicest guy in indie rock made for a memorable night at the Southgate House. I’m only hoping the rest of the week can continue the trend.
John Vanderslice
The Tallest Man On Earth
John Vanderslice
John Vanderslice
John Vanderslice
The Tallest Man On Earth
