Well, another Richard Buckner show (my fourth, I think) and another fine performance. The venue, Plush, was intimate, sorta perfect for Buckner’s songs. We sat and drank on the patio beforehand and Buckner, seemingly wanting to enjoy a moment alone, was approached by a fanboy, who asked, “Mind if I sit here?” when there were about seven other empty tables. Buckner kindly obliged. I felt like saying something to Buckner, like, “Hey, I really appreciate your music” or something like that, but it always comes off sounding so … so … I don’t know. That whole dynamic of approaching the musicians seems strange: Do they want to know you’re a fan or do they want to be left alone? Ah, anyway …
Anders Parker opened, and I was really impressed. He played heavily off his newest album, “Tell it to the Dust.” He switched between acoustic and electric guitars and took a few turns on a Wurlitzer piano. His voice hardly holds a room like Buckner’s, but his guitar playing seems a little more technical. And I love his disheveled-I-just-woke-up-and-look-how-messy-my-hair- is look. Plus, he was drinking bourbon. What self-respecting alt-country artist doesn’t?
As for Buckner, well, my only complaint is that interaction with the audience was minimal. Not that I expect inane chatting, because that gets old, but there was literally nothing until he was finished. He used recorders to loop guitar lines and then played over those, thus filling the would-be silence in between songs. Nevertheless, you get the impression he’d rather just play.
My pictures of Anders Parker didn’t come out as well as I would have liked (so, see below for music treat). I’m still learning the ways of my Canon PowerShot; it was the first time I messed with no-flash, delayed-exposure picture-taking. There are a couple of Buckner in which I, uh, accidentally used the flash; I’m sure he was appreciative of that. Hey, I was having a few drinks.
Here are some pics:
Ever wanted to see what Speedway Blvd. near the Univ. of Arizona campus looks like from the Jack in the Box drive-thru under the influence of alcohol at about 1 in the morning? I knew you did:
This one is just to tease Chris; that’s right, Sufjan is even coming to Tucson:
Don’t think you’re getting outta here without music. As promised, we hit up PDQ Records, a massive warehouse of vinyl in Tucson. I plucked some fantastic 45s, which all will get their time here. One of the finds was a clear vinyl promo “limited edition” of Varnaline, which is essentially Anders Parker before he decided to go by Anders Parker; I really like “Hammer.” Enjoy the warmth of analog because I’m too tired to clean it up right now. Besides, we have Brendan Benson to go see tonight.
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