So Saturday afternoon at the Detour Festival was not enough. I had to take in English folk-rockers Noah and the Whale one more time — and not just because I have a thing for ukuleles. The occasion was the free show at Spaceland on Monday night that kicked off the Kenan Bell residency. (More on him later, but trust me, it was a good time.) The final stop of the Londoners’ three-week U.S. tour was problematic, what with a broken guitar string, a chatty crowd and a feedback attack apparently caused by, of all things, a woman’s standing in front of the soundboard and throwing her hair back into the connections. Or something like that.
Still, “Five Years Time” and “Rocks and Daggers” shone brilliantly, and the band broke out a cover of Daniel Johnston’s “Devil Town,” handling the woes with aplomb. Afterward, I played One Question with multi-instrumentalist Urby Whale:
What are three things you learned in three weeks in America?
“One, American has better venues than Britain, especially the small venues we’ve played. You even take a place that holds only a hundred people — it sounds good and it’s a great show for a hundred people. I think it has something to do with the American ethos; Americans take pride in what they do.
“Two, your food is phenomenal. It really does make a difference.
“Three, people were very respectful of our music. We did a lot of free shows, and even the shows we had 200 or 300 for, people by and large stayed quiet and listened.”
||| Noah and the Whale return to the U.S. in December. Look for a gig at the Troubadour.
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