by Cyn Collins
Photography by Mark Wojahn
Photography by Mark Wojahn
Southern Comfort
Sweet soul solace was brought to Minneapolis via Valerie June’s concert
Saturday night, February 17 at First Avenue Mainroom. Chicago-based Birds of Chicago husband and wife duo JT Nero
and Allison Russell, kicked off the evening with inspirational old-timey
country, blues and hollers. This was their fifth and final night touring with
June, who they expressed much joy and gratitude for. Russell’s versatile vocals
were riveting - at times ethereal, others guttural. She was adept at various
instrumentation, from the clarinet to the ukulele to whistling. Nero’s gravelly
vocals harkened to ‘70s country singers (they even name-checked John Prine in a
song). One audience member aptly noted Nero reminded him of Lyle Lovett.
Birds of Chicago’s audience banter was funny and heartwarming. They harmonized beautifully and worked off of each other playfully. Each shared a story of their grandparents between songs. Nero wore his grandfather’s wool hat that he’d worn 41 years, then sang a song inspired by his grandfather. Russell talked about being inspired by her Scottish grandmother in Saskatchewan before singing heartwrenching “Barley,” a dark, mesmerizing song serving as a salve during these painful days. They closed their set with “American Flowers,” a folk tune inspired by Woodie Guthrie, and driving across vast plains, that they encouraged the audience sing along to the chorus, as is folk tradition.
Valerie June entered dramatically
draped in a leopard print cape, her band sharply dressed, a couple guys had great
beards. They opened with “The Hour,” instrumentally sounding like tight, classic
Motown, replete with organs and bangles. June hauntingly hummed, before singing
the bittersweet and yet hopeful song, causing audience members to sway early
in.
She then shed the cape, exposing a stunning sparkling playfully cute outfit
in black, onyx and silver with powder blue cowboy boots. Tennessee native June was as
sparkling as her outfit, refreshingly delightful and charming, impish in her
warmly humorous stories delivered with her sweet Southern accent. She talked to
the audience as intimately as though we were hanging out in her kitchen, for
instance sharing a tale of kicking her man out. Like . . . you know how it
feels when you want to throw out all his stuff out at once, real fast, along
with the couch, and the couch barely fits through the door but you push it
through anyway, so then the door’s broke, so you ask him to fix the door before
he leaves? “It’s Tennessee, it’s warm, we have time for him to do that here!”
She quips.
Time was a prevalent theme throughout June’s music and the show. They performed songs from her stunning second full-length record, The Order of Time, such as“Man Done Wrong” “The Front Door” the rousing “Got Soul” “Slip Slide on By” “If And” and “Just In Time.” At various points June talked about concepts of time, time in our lives, inevitability, aging, loss, grief and transcendence.
They also performed songs from her preceding album, Pushin’ Against A Stone, such as “Tennessee Time.” Between songs, June shared strong messages in her sweet voice, crackling at times with emotion from the heart, at times evoking an old wise woman or a shaman, speaking from another plane. Before singing “You Can’t Be Told,” she encouraged audience members to rid their self-doubt. “Don’t let family or friends tell you how to be. When they tell you “don’t do this,” “Don’t do that,” continue to do what feels right to you!” she advised.
The band guys left the stage,
while June sang acoustic, “Workin’ Woman Blues” telling the women we are all
goddesses and dedicated that song to us. This soul-stirring song featured
African rhythms, as did many during the show. For a few of the songs she played
the banjo, that old instrument that originated in Africa. She played it in ways
it used to be played before bluegrass, with more African, and old-timey
Appalachian style and rhythms.
Her vocals also referenced old-time
country and honky tonk with twang, singing with crackle and spitfire, laughter
bubbling at the surface ala Wanda Jackson. Her band was excellent and fun,
including a phenomenal pedal steel player. They were very tight and sometimes
playful, and sang great harmonies with June. They played in an amalgam of
styles from country soul to old time gospel, to African, honky tonk and old
timey.
At times her songs sounded like they came from another space and time. Her unique angelic vocals soared and lifted the heart, her poetic lyrics inspiring to the core. She shared a story about hearing a beautiful voice in her head, then quickly writing the song down so she wouldn’t forget it, as one does with a dream sometimes. Then she sang us that beautiful mesmerizing song, “Twined and Twisted.”
The show had fun twists, moving
from sweet country soul songs to old country blues stompers such as
“Shakedown,” where June showed her dance skills and made people dance. June
laughed while she emphatically told us she dances every day, every single day.
She turns the music loud, then “I go like this [gives a high kick, then shows
seriously wild dance moves] then the neighbors complain. I tell them, 'it’s only 10 minutes!'”
she retorts every time.
There was so much heartwarming humor. When June pulled out a very small
banjo, she introduced it as "Baby Banjo" and informed us she wasn’t sure “she” [Baby Banjo] would ever play, but
then one day she “sang like Aretha! She laid it down.” June cooed, cradling her little banjo like a proud mama. She
gestured at the bigger banjo she’d played oft throughout the show, introducing
it as Mama Banjo, then introduced the bandmembers, noting they are like family.
The show felt like a dream sometimes, spellbinding as June spoke entrancingly about experiencing the feeling of the very dark cozy space just before sleep, floating in the clouds, or talking about fairy dust, in the palm of our hands, as we look for the light in ourselves. How it feels to have lived a beautiful day, simply because we lived for one more day.
Toward the end, June expressed
her love for Minneapolis, how great the First Avenue staff and venue are, performing
the Cedar in the past, the beautiful people, the ethnic food, and looking
forward to going to the mega mall, because “I love shopping, as you can see”
laughingly gesturing at her sparkling sequin suit. June explained she was
wearing the sparkling suit tonight to symbolize how she wanted people to feel,
to know they can find their light inside, let it shine. Then she sang her
inspiring song about finding your light within, “Astral Plane.”
Like shots of Southern Comfort for the soul, the Valerie June
performance was just what so many of us needed. Afterwards, a local musician/
audience member expressed to me what I’d also experienced, that this was just
the show he needed. It made our hearts feel good. Her music, stories and spirit
were healing, lifting people up from cold, loneliness, and sadness in these
hard times. It brought people together, congregating in the warmth and
inspiration of a truly unique, authentic artist. We can’t wait to see her
again.
