Preface
I went to the show last night. Let me preface this by apologizing for this long winded review of the show and "Heroes & Thieves". I've broken it down into sections to make it easier to read, and so you don't have to trudge through my ramblings if you only want to know how the concert was. Also, I'd like to say that I never was a fan of Vanessa at the early stages of her career. I liked “A Thousand Miles” when it came out, as well as “Ordinary Day”, but not enough to check out “Be Not Nobody”. These songs became a part of history on some mix tape that I made back in high school. “Harmonium” went completely under the radar for me, and Vanessa had fallen off the face of the earth, as far as I was concerned.
Introduction
A month ago, I heard Vanessa had released another album to some critical acclaim. I was intrigued by this since I was wondering how she had progressed as a song writer and the mention of a collaboration with Stevie Nicks surely caught my attention. I downloaded the album, and I was filled with joy on the first listen. This could have been mistaken for the temporary joy that most sugarcoated pop brings, but I think that the fact that I have been listening to it addictively for the past month defeats that notion. I believe that this joy was not only inspired by the songwriting on the album, but moreso by the revival of an artist that I thought had fallen off the face of the earth. I immediately bought a pair of tickets to the show when I heard there was a Vancouver date, and I rarely attend concerts.
Also, I’m the type of person who only buys albums for artists that I respect and support – even though I may only ever listen to the CD once, since I already have it on my iPod, I went out to the record store (a very rare occasion, believe me), and rummaged through the store to find a copy of “Heroes & Thieves”. It was nowhere to be found in the best sellers section, and I couldn’t even find a placeholder for “Vanessa Carlton” under the pop/rock section. I was ready to walk out of the store, but decided to file through the CDs under “The Cars”. Sure enough, this treasure of a record was buried in there. By the way, this happened twenty minutes before the show. Anyway, on with the show.
The Concert
The turnout was pretty lame; I'd say 150 people in a venue that could hold 550 to 600. The club had stools along the bar, and after the first opening act, practically everyone moved their stools up to the front of the stage - a stark contrast to the standing room only show in the Seattle the night before. I felt for the performers because crossing the border to play in Vancouver is an inconvenience, and many artists skip over Canadian stops. This was probably a night where the tour lost money, or broke even at best.
That said, all of the performers still put on really good shows. Graham tried to get the crowd going, but they weren't really feeling it. He pointed out a person in the front row who was texting someone on their phone during his set, and you could tell that it only added to the frustration of playing for an abismal audience. I liked his single, "The First Week", but didn't know he just released a new CD. He's a great performer, and I couldn't help but smile when he started rockin' out "Summer of '69" by Bryan Adams (a Canadian music icon, FYI) - too bad he only knew the first part of it. The audience got a little more excited as Vanessa's set grew nearer and as Graham pumped it up.
I’m not too sure about the order of songs, but the set list was the same as the Seattle show.
Nolita Fairytale
Hands on Me
Heroes & Thieves
Ordinary Day
My Best
C'est La Vie
Who's To Say
Half A Week Before The Winter
The One (on Piano)
White Houses
All Is Well
Fools Like Me
Home
**encore**
A Thousand Miles
More Than This
Stupidly, I didn't bring a camera so forgive me for the lack of audio/visual documentation. There was a backdrop of lights which I think was a new addition, because later Vanessa said something about them finally getting the lights up, and that "it's all about the friggin' lights". The lights definitely gave the concert a nice ambiance. It's all about the friggin' lights, indeed.
Vanessa came on with Skye at 10:00pm to the loudest cheer of the night, thus far. This was my first time seeing Vanessa live, although I have been checking out the videos from the tour so far on YouTube. The videos certainly don't do her justice. Her voice was a lot more powerful and her intonation was much better than the videos led me to believe. To be honest, I was skeptical of the acoustic set and the lack of a full band up until I heard the first song. By the end of "Nolita Fairytale", I was definitely feeling the "naked" sound of the songs.
She made a comment about this being her first time in Vancouver before going into "Hands on Me", at which point I couldn't help but think, "Nice first impression, Vancouver. 150 people, how pathetic. This may be the last time she comes to Vancouver."
At this point, I was really sympathetic for her because of the poor turnout, but Vanessa lightened up the mood by commenting that the lights on the ceiling in the club looking like dildos. She must have noticed while "searching for stage lights". It garnered a chuckle from the audience, and I thought it was definitely appropriate being a 19+ show (19 being the legal drinking age in Canada, a fact that tourism Canada should probably make better known). Most of the audience looked like they were in the mid-20s anyway.
What amazed me the most for the first half of the show was how she was playing her heart out despite the lack of an audience. There was a little stumble in “Heroes & Thieves”, I think; however, I think it was after “C’est La Vie” that she divulged to the audience that she recently discovered pomegranate infused vodka, with a bit of a giggle. By “Half a Week Before the Winter”, I think that the vodka was kicking in because she missed several notes, granted it is one of her more complex songs. I became anxious again, hoping that the wheels wouldn’t fall off. She wasn’t as tight as she could have been on “The One”, which was too bad because it’s one of my favourites.
She recovered nicely with “White Houses”, which she commented was the “uncensored” version. I wasn’t aware that the song was censored when it was released. Unfortunately, things started to unravel towards the end. “Fools Like Me” was interrupted at the beginning because she forgot the lyrics, and someone shouted “For me!”, at the beginning of “Home”, causing Vanessa to start the song with “For me…”. It was anticlimactic, since “Home” was one of the numbers I was looking forward to the most. At this point, my heart went out to Vanessa.
After a brief moment, she and Skye returned for the encore. The opening notes to “A Thousand Miles” riled up the audience – the loudest cheer of the night, by far (more on this later). She played the song beautifully, but the highlight of the night for me was the flawless performance of “More Than This”, Vanessa’s best work without a doubt in my mind.
I would have stayed after the show to vocalize the following thoughts to Vanessa, but I couldn’t find a willing companion to go to the show with so I dragged my brother to go, and I thought it would be cruel to make him hang around after the show. So, a message board post will have to do, even if Vanessa may never read it.
Post-concert Rant
I see “Heroes & Thieves” as a rejuvenation of Vanessa’s career and every time I listen to the album I get that same rush as the first time I heard it. Since then, I have listened to “Be Not Nobody” and “Harmonium” but neither has caught my ear the way that that “Heroes…” has. I definitely relate more with the latest album because it is more contemporary with my life, but I completely agree with Vanessa that this is her best work yet. I’ve read what critics and some fans have said about the latest album being a disappointment, about how it doesn’t even compare with her first two albums. I understand where the devoted fans are coming from. “Heroes…” is a departure from her earlier work, which may be perceived as a disappointment. I see it as the progression of an artist, and a triumph.
Which brings me back to the cheers and screams for “A Thousand Miles”, and a review that bagged her performance at a concert in Las Vegas. Yes, it is a great song and I’m sure there is much nostalgia associated with the song for people, but she has released a fantastic new album since then, as well as an album and several singles in between. I’m sure that she gets tired of being known as the girl who wrote and sings “A Thousand Miles”. Following the song with “More Than This” was very appropriate. There is such a stark contrast, and her progression as an artist is so evident. I wish that the people who still only know her for “A Thousand Miles” would take a good hard listen to “Heroes & Thieves”.
Don't live in forgotten times
May this always remind you of the sea under the skies
blue looking glass
Let’s make this our story, let’s live in the glory.
Time, it fades away, precious as a song,
Cause someday we’ll be gone
