One fast move or I'm gone...

Life has been moving at breakneck speed in my world as of late, but in the midst of all of it, the husband and I made it out last Wednesday to a show at Antone's. I've only been to Antone's one other time (travesty, right?) and both times I have been impressed at HOW GOOD it sounds in there!!! It really must have the best acoustics of any club downtown. Everything is balanced and clear and not too loud. I really think almost anything (or anyone) can sound good at Antone's. When in Austin, I would recommend catching a show there - I hear they have great blues nights.


So what made us go out on a work night a mere 4 days before my brother's wedding? Ben Gibbard. You would, too. Over the past couple of years Ben (of Death Cab for Cutie and the Postal Service) has been working on a project with Jay Farrar (of Son Volt and Uncle Tupelo). The project was centered around creating a soundtrack for a film version of Jack Kerouac's "Big Sur" called "One Fast Move or I'm Gone." The process started in 2007 and the album came out late last year. Gibbard and Farrar didn't know each other when it all began and Farrar stated in an interview with the Austin American-Statesman that their early sessions really documented their getting-to-know-you process. By the end of it all, about 90% of the material came straight out of the book and an album was born.


The album in and of itself is very interesting because it is less a melding of 2 styles and more an instance of 2 styles co-existing side-by-side. Gibbard's songs are fun, easy pop and Farrar's have a country/blues bent. From what I know about the book/Kerouac, it seems to be an appropriate juxtaposition. The album starts out with the effortless "California Zephyr" (helmed by Gibbard) and ends with the melancholy "San Francisco" (conversely led by Farrar). In a nutshell, this is how Kerouac's trip to Big Sur went and I think the music captures that. If this was a great review, I would have read the book as well, but what can you do.


Willie Johnson (of Centro-Matic) opened and did a respectable job. It was just himself, his guitar, and a looping pedal. I got a little bored, but he was really sincere and had a nice presence. I know I'm old when I have little tolerance for opening acts. Let's just get to the act I paid to see! And so we did...

True to the album, Ben and Jay opened with "California Zephyr" and then ran like a well-oiled machine. They must have used 10 different guitars between the two of them. The hardest-working guy on stage was their guitar tech - he used each song to tune the next guitar and always got the right guitar to the right guy for the right song. The next hardest-working guy was their steel guitar player - he was out-of-control and pretty much the best I've seen/heard. The whole show was fun to see and experience - and I really felt like I was experiencing a unique moment in music, I wouldn't say I feel like that during a lot of the live music I see. Ben Gibbard got to rock a little more than he usually does with Death Cab (fan girl moment: I was like literally 7 feet away from him whenever he sat down at the piano! EEE!!!!!!) and looked like he really enjoyed that opportunity. Watching/listening to Jay Farrar made me want to get into Son Volt and Uncle Tupelo (my friend, Andrew, is out there rolling his eyes - he's been telling me about Son Volt for years). He plays harmonica like a lead guitar soloist - AMAZING. They played the whole album and some other songs that may have been covers, but I didn't know them. Two encores later, it was time to go and it was totally worth staying out past my bedtime.
Buy the cd, see the show, you'll enjoy it.