Neko Case @ Knight Theater

I have 2 Neko Case albums, Blacklisted and Furnace Room Lullaby.  And while her style of music is not something I regularly listen to, her voice is exceptional, and so unique, it is easy to fall in love with.  A & I saw her open for (and outshine)  Ray LaMontaigne 5 years ago, so it was a no brainer to get tickets when she was coming back to headline.  A's brother D even came along - he was the one who turned me onto her in the first place.

We met at Mariposa for appetizers at the bar, before waling across the street to The Knight Theater.   Good food at the bar in the midst of the Charlotte after work crowd.

From the start, this show was great.  The sound was perfect and we were seated about 15 rows back (and the isle for my long legs).  To open with Deep Red Bells set the tone for the night for me.  Such a beautiful song.  At her previous show, she played nothing I knew, so to start with a favorite was impeccable.  Case, and her band, looked like they were enjoying themselves.  And that showed in the music.  Between song banter was like listening to someone tell a story in your living room, and even unfamiliar songs still sounded brilliant.  While nothing was played from Furnace Room Lullaby, 4 known songs from Blacklisted (Deep Red Bells, Lady Pilot and Outro with Bees) scattered through the set, and a mid-point cover of The Go Betweens' The Devil's Eye, was a surprise - I didn't know their influence spread so wide for so long.

One of the things I find weird about concerts I've seen in the US is peoples' need to talk during a show, or at a seated show, as was the case tonight, get up and down all night to go outside.  What the fuck are these people doing?  Use the bathroom and get your drinks before the show - and enjoy.  Simple, right?!  Tonight was a noticeable exception.  The crowd  were awed into silence between songs and no one was dumb enough to get up and leave the theater for fear of missing something amazing.

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed this 2 hours of music.  Song after song was beautiful.  Neko Case is another one I will wait for to come back to town and see again.  In the meantime, it's time to find more of her records.

Neko Case Setlist

The Crap Facts:

This is my 483rd concert.
The Knight Theatre is the 133rd venue I've see a show in.
This is my 97th show in Charlotte.
This is my 116th show in North Carolina.
This is my 286th concert in the US.
This is my 2nd Neko Case show.

Neko Case is the 200th time I've seen a band at least twice.