The Twin Peaks vibes were haunting us during this special one-off concert, tonight. The red stage curtain was an exact replica from the ‘Red Room’ from the smash hit TV series. At the end of every season 3 episode of Twin Peaks, musicians and singers took to the stage in the fictional, ‘Bang Bang Bar’.
Tonight’s music artistes - Anna Calvi, Douglas Dare and Chrysta Bell - have all worked with David Lynch in some capacity. David Lynch places them centre stage for our entertainment in an event that amalgamates theatre and concert together.
It was wraithlike and atmospheric from the very moment it began. Much of the music was paradoxically unsettling and comforting. Chrysta Bell was the main host for the evening. But this wasn’t just about chatting and playing music to the audience, there was storytelling and theatricality embedded into everything. Bell’s monologues were delivered hypnotically, sensually, and gently.
First to jump into the performer’s void was Douglas Dare. Born in 1990, Dare is a singer-songwriter based in London, originally from Bridport. He is the son of a piano teacher (which explains why he was so good playing piano) and he studied music at The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts. He has released EPs and albums.
Less is more with this artist. It was just his nectar-sweet, honed, and mellow singing voice with a piano. I loved the varied use of the soft and sustaining pedal on the piano. Dare is multi-talented. Songs leapt off the manuscript paper and took on a life of their own, in-between tracks was quick and quirky conversation with the audience. The songs were about different kinds of love: romantic, paternal, and innocent. Love and melancholy were common themes throughout most of the songs, tonight. He turned up, did a splendid performance, and left. Simple and as humble as that, but spell-binding.
Bell did her central set next. Chrysta Bell was born in 1978. She is an American singer-songwriter, model, and actress. Originally from Texas. She has worked with David Lynch since the pair met in 1999. They have released two albums together, apparently fitting into the genre of 'dream pop'.
I think it’s entirely possible you can become intoxicated with Bell’s music. By which I mean you enter multiple variants of consciousness comprised of thoughts, impressions, emotions, inklings, and ideas. Is this the Lynchian effect? Who knows and I don’t think it can properly be defined either. There was a good blend of up-tempo and slower songs. Though, there were other times tonight where it felt like there was a little too many calmer tracks. Most of the time Bell’s articulation is great, just occasionally I questioned what lyrics she sang though. All things considered, Bell is a magnificent performer and she totally owned the stage. I adored how her music metamorphosed into something cacophonic temporarily. Bell made you feel elated.
Finally, there was Anna Calvi. Born in 1980, she is another English singer-songwriter and guitarist. Her first album was released in the UK in 2011 and earned her the European Border Breakers Award. In addition to that, it was nominated for the Mercury Prize as well as for British Breakthrough Act at the 2012 Brit Awards.
Similarly, once again, it was simply a performer with a guitar. But, she blew the roof off Home Theatre with her blazing and glowing performance. A vocally versatile artist, her vibrato was pleasing to the ear and her rock screams were impressively powerful. Performance wise, she was fixated on giving it her all and that was inspiring. The fragile, hanging light bulbs behind her reminded me of what I had seen in Lynch’s exhibition. They were flickering in time to her expressive and dramatic music.
Speaking of which, I wasn’t told who designed the lighting and sound but whoever they were, they were miracle workers. The intermittent reverb, the mix balance, the first-rate quality speakers, and the range in dynamics used in the sound design just added so much more to an already outstanding concert. The lighting complimented the theatricality to everything. A range of stage lights were carefully positioned, arousing contrasting feelings from isolation to joy, and sorrow to ecstasy. So much effort and thought had gone into these production elements. This was a celebration of music, musicianship, and artistic collaboration.
on - 12/7/19
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