Listening Loudly: the Parts and the Sum of The Joy Formidable

It occurs to me at the end of the 2nd song at the Joy Formidable's March 29 concert at Union Transfer in Philadelphia that they are definitely all that I'd hoped they'd be and then some.  By the end, after the enthusiastic gong banging, the public sharing of the band's fruit tray, the endearing Welsh accent, the loud, hard but eminently listenable and catchy music, and the fact that drummer Matt is a magical two-armed octopus on speed you understand it was very special indeed.  

This was one of those shows where you start out being enthusiastic of the obvious hard-playing talent and sweet-but-not-underrepresented singing of Ritzy, and you lean over to you friend and say something like "Ah, I feel like I'm watching a younger Courtney Love at the very top of her game without all the psychodrama!  She's really so good!"

And then you calm down a bit from that and realize, oh wow, hey, Rhydian is a rock-solid performer on each and every song.  He does so much, brings so much to each song so you lean over to your friend, and say something like "Damn, check him out, he's brings it to the wall each time!"  You add in something redundant and obvious like "He rocks!" and "He's really so good!" But then, when its over too soon and they have a harpist gently playing a tune which sounds like Whirring, and fuck you hope it is, because, well, that's a great song too, and then it is, and then the rocketship that is Matt's playing takes off for its final flight you lean over to someone - really, anyone - who is next to you, and you don't need words, you beam at them and shake your head and affirm, "WOO HOO!" and as a final coda, scream "YYYYEAH!!!!!"

And there you have it folks, the Joy Formidable: each member purely worthy and entertaining singly, and really, so good, as I may have mentioned before.

Go.  See them.  "It means that I can be happy for you.  Happy for you. Happy for you. Happy for you...."*


*(from their song the Greatest Light The Greatest Shade)

the tendency to do nothing
nothing - is worth attempting
why help?  why cry?
it sounds so low
but its not as low as I can go
but oh there are things I like
amusements, lifestyle and tricks
cheap licks - these are
such a seismic shift in approach.

its hard to even remember the old days existed
except as anecdote
something I hardly ponder
gone and extinct
the wonder

but I make more money
and I've almost shed the cautionary guilt
I can only imagine how that must look
dance in the kitchen
drink wine, masturbate, make dates
and honest feelings about details

I wanted more, much more?
I can't answer that question
more living more meaning more feeling
and that cache' from the stuff I couldn't shake soon enough
the otherness, the earnestness, the hap-hazard, skip-walked
I've colored over all that, but I still see my shape there
outlined in chalk.