True to a man who had just spent a year in the Himalayas, Alexi Murdoch appeared like a spirit on the stage, fluid and intangible beneath the low glow of blue lights, which shined just enough to illuminate the outline of an emaciated figure – made more so by his skinny jeans and tight fitting long tee – and a beard as unkempt and as the hair atop his head. It was clear that Alexi had “lost all care for the things [he] owned,” and as such, was prepared to deliver a show devoid of both pretense and extravagance, in favor of one filled with soul and truth. He looked like a man who had just spent a year in the Himalayas, and he played like one too, endowed with a spiritual strength from the mountains that rose above his physical slightness.
He stood with his guitar as an extension of himself, and sang a mixture of songs from his upcoming EP/Album, as well as some of the more celebrated songs from TIME WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE.
Also as an extension of himself were his fellow band members (rhythm guitar, bass, percussion, keys/electronics/effects, and trumpet), whose individual instruments could hardly be separated as distinct parts of the whole. Like Sigur Ros, rather than layer harmonies one on top of the other or serve accompaniments to a simple melody, they created atmospheres and worlds where Alexi’s smooth and dark voice (a deeper version of Nick Drake) slipped in as undetected as the instruments. And the music emanated from them as from one source, organically flowing and building like a spring that starts from groundwater, which turns into a brook and then a river, culminates in a waterfall, and finally finds rest in its outlet, the sea. In that way, they seemed to “feel” the music rather than play it, which assumption can find support in the fact that their eyes remained closed 75% of the time, opening only slightly the other 25%, perhaps in order to verify that they were indeed on a stage in Los Angeles in the El Rey Theatre, as opposed to floating on a cloud somewhere in another dimension.
In general, Alexi stayed true to the arrangements that were laid down in the studio, but also showed his artistry in a reinvention of “Dream About Flying,” which took on a whole new rhythm and more intricate riffs on the guitar (he must have had time work on his skills during his sojourn in the mountains), and a more simplified version of “Orange Sky” that was perhaps even more fulfilling than the studio version, slowing down the tempo to allow every stroke of the strings, every beat, and every lyric glow in our hearts like a setting sun.
The new tracks, which will be released some time in the next two to three months, still have that Alexi flavor – the combination of haunting electronica and indie acoustic riffs, and of course, the pure and unmistakable voice of Alexi himself –, but he has moved into a slightly more upbeat and optimistic realm, while maintaining a few of those moments of awe or reverence that permeate his previous work. It sounds strange to say, but this new direction, especially as it relates to his finger picking on the guitar, points almost towards folk and bluegrass, in the same way certain tracks from Ray LaMontagne’s GOSSIP IN THE GRAIN do. Needless to say, it fits and works brilliantly.
The crowning moment of last night’s performance came during the encore, when Alexi performed his stirring rendition of “Orange Sky,” and the crowd, without being beckoned or called upon, joined him in singing the chorus: “my salvation lies in your love, my salvation lies in your love, my salvation lies in your love, in your love, in your love...” Incredibly, like Alexi’s voice and the musicians that made up his band, the crowd became part of the whole, in no way overpowering Alexi or the song, but becoming yet another element in the atmosphere. A subtle smile came across Alexi’s face and not so subtle smiles played on the faces of his fellow musicians, and it was clear we had all found salvation in each other and our love for Alexi and his music.
Douglas W. Bailey
dwadebailey@gmail.com
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