Live: hey willpower and Amy X. Neuberg

A great evening at The Lab in San Francisco this weekend. I met Tim Walters and his wife Josie (who is an accomplished sculptor) for dinner, and then Tim and I went over to the Lab. To my surprise, we also ran into Tim Thompson, the creator of KeyKit, who I find works round the corner from me here in Sunnyvale. (Looking at Tim T.’s website, it’s no longer a surprise; he’s working with Herb Heinz’s band dud, and Herb works with Amy. Circle closed.)

There were three acts; the first I unfortunately didn’t catch the name of; the Huts (who were supposed to be on first) were unfortunately unable to appear due to a family emergency. The substitute band was okay – they did an extended set which appeared to be a lot of live loop mixing – definite moments, but no definite direction.

hey willpower was wonderfully bouncy synth-pop (one vocalist, one synthesist with backing tracks – on a Powerbook, looked like – and dancers!) which was simultaeously willing to be silly (the goofy eighties dance moves were priceless) and danceable, with flashes of brilliance. They didn’t quite get the Lab audience dancing – not quite that kind of venue, and honestly not enough room! – but they were really good; I hope to catch them at at an actual dance club sometime.

Last on was Amy X. Neuburg; I had taken a peek at her website, and I was expecting to enjoy her set, but I was unprepared for the combination of humor, sophistication, and just plain chops. She has a remarkably capable voice – everything from raspy bluesy to pure operatic soprano to wispy chanteuse to, well you name it.

In this performance, she had a cello trio which mixed wonderfully with the warmth of her voice; she integrates her use of electronics – mostly live looping of her voice via Echoplex – beautifully. She also uses a Drumkat to trigger samples, so her performance is visually interesting as well. It’s obvious that she’s having such a good time during a performance. She talks with the the audience between numbers, including reading a list of names proposed for her cello trio: “There’s Always Room for Cello” got the largest groan, but “The K-Y Celli” got the biggest laugh.

My favorite piece from the evening was probably “Life Stepped In”. A stunning combination of Laurie Andersonesque monologue, Baladamenti walking bass, and a chillingly beautiful buildup of the chorus as the song proceeds. Hysterically funny and heartbreakingly sad simultaneously.

She’s marvelously talented and deserves a much wider audience. I picked up a copy of her CD Residue at the concert (”Life Stepped In” is on it, but the whole CD is tremendous). Go. Get one. Listen to it. Tell your friends. Now.

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