In Continuum.: Rachael Yamagata

Rachael Yamagata

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Rachael Yamagata

I think my camera works only in Esplanade.

So, I just came back from the Rachael Yamagata concert. Like any other concerts that I have ever been to, I suppose I should write this entry before it all fades away with my nightly dreams. So, I think the concert was great! Not on the same level as Coldplay of course, that'd be pretty hard to beat in the short term. Hell, let's say that it'd be pretty hard to beat in the long term, because they were that good. Still, for somebody like Rachael Yamagata, I thought she pulled off a wonderful job at Esplanade today, ten times better than when she came to Singapore the last time for the Mosaic Music Festival. She bounced onto the stage with a flu and a very bad jet lag, but she pulled the show off anyway - this time, completely flawless. I have an inkling that she messed up so often last time because she wasn't exactly on tour when she came down to Singapore. You know how it is, even the professionals get somewhat rusty after you've been resting for too long. Anyway, this time around, Rachael came down to Singapore on her own, along with her band, and she has had enough rehearsals to pull off a beautiful show for the lot of us who have been craving for her return.

I must admit that I was somewhat underwhelmed by her last visit. The short set list was one thing, the off-pitches and the forgotten lyrics were another. This time around, aside from the fact that she did not mess up at all, she amped up the already very beautiful songs that she has by stripping some of them down to the bare minimum. Anyway, before we get into that with more detail, let's just say that I almost didn't remember the concert at all. I was reminded by Vanessa only last night, and that was how I remembered. I was looking forward of course, but I haven't been jumping up and down for the concert like I did with Coldplay. Then again, understandably, it was Coldplay. Anyway, so Vanessa and I got to Esplanade an hour earlier, and decided to hang around the foyer first before going into the concert hall. I hate the fact that the nicer merchandizes, like the t-shirts, were only available in female sizes. The only t-shirt that I really wanted only had female cutting, which was the same as the Coldplay concert - what's up with that? And for some reason, the hoodies were five dollars cheaper than the t-shirts. I wonder why. I didn't buy anything in the end, not liking the designs on all the other t-shirts. So, Vanessa and I decided that it'd make more sense to go into the venue first to get our cameras ready.

It failed me last time at the Coldplay concert, so I was determined to make it work this time at the Esplanade. The Psapp and Battles pictures turned out really well, which got me thinking if the camera really works better with Esplanade. Maybe it is the artsy vibe of the place, who knows. Anyway, for some reason, the "new" batteries that I brought were actually empty ones. Those were the ones I stole from the school lecture hall, so shame on those technical maintenance people! Anyway, I had to work with just half of whatever that was left with the batteries, and that made me a little nervous at first. A few test shots of the opening band and I was set for the concert. The opening band was a local band called Jack & Rai, a rather prominent band that plays at Timbre from time to time. I must say that they were pretty good, and it is sad to know that the only famous local bands are the ones filled with teenage angst - what about bands like Jack & Rai who really have something going for them? Of course, Jack should really sticking to the guitar, because Rai is about ten folds better than Jack in that department. Still, I think they did a wonderful job, and I applaud them with all my heart. Good job, guys.

There was a brief intermission when the lights came up again, and it wasn't long before the band came up onto the stage - with the lights still turned on. A note to whoever that controls the lights in the Esplanade concert hall - you suck. Seriously, you have zero coordination with the crew working in the backstage, and it takes forever for you to turn down the lights - what's up with you? Have a little professionalism! Anyway, Rachael came onto a stage in a bright yellow dress, and this time they brought along a cellist, which was really cool. You can't go wrong when you throw cello into your music, and I suppose it was a part of why the last concert really wasn't that great. It felt that it was missing something, and this time they managed to grab a cellist, which was awesome. Anyway, the band opened with a soft ballad, with Rachael on the piano with Elephants. From there, she dived straight into the second song, a crowd favorite, Be Be Your Love. By this time, I could already tell that the concert was better than the previous, and the cellist really added life and depth to the live versions of the songs. Kudos!

I mentioned in the album review that the faster songs in her first album really didn't work for me very well, except maybe 1963. However, the faster songs in her second album (or second part of her second album) are actually pretty damn good if you ask me. I love the nails-on-the-back feel to them, a little edgy and raw side of Rachael that we don't get to see a lot. The live version of Faster really brought a lot of punch, and I really enjoyed the live renditions, perhaps even more so than the studio version anyway. She never ever plays the version of Worn Me Down that I have and love, and that irritates me a bit. The version that I have is a little more mellowed down, a little more eased out on the edges, and definitely easier on my ears. That is not to say the rock-out version isn't nice though, but I just kinda prefer the one that I have in my iPod Touch. Anyway, another crowd pleaser right there, followed by Letter Read. Not exactly a song that I am very fond of, but you really cannot say anything bad about Rachael for the most part. She goes out there as herself, uncensored and uncut, and you can tell that who she is on stage is who she is offstage. It's hard to criticize someone like that, and you got to give credit to her banters about loving CATS the musical as well as losing her guitar pick in her bra.

Oh, we have to give this a mention. She played my favorite song! I have been wanting her to play Even So since the last time she came here, since she didn't play that one. I was hoping for either Even So, or Ode To, or both. I don't ask for a lot, so Even So was enough for my modest appetite. I swear, the live version of Even So was freakin' awesome, and I have to say that the stripped down version with just the piano and her vocal was definitely better even than the studio version. I am glad that she picked that song and threw it into the set list, because it is a song that means a lot to me, in many ways. And, it is always interesting to hear how songs came about during concerts, something which you don't really get unless you pay to get into one. Over And Over was apparently inspired by a haunting of the studio that they were recording at. Well, not really a studio, but more like a giant mansion in the middle of nowhere. Apparently, she plagiarized off the "Trumpet Ghost" which she heard playing a tune one night - how creepy. I'm not bought by the story, but who cares - it's a good song.

Then we have two more fast tracks back to back, punch punch punch. I am glad that she picked the fast songs that she picked this time, and decided to do away with the faster materials from her Happenstance album. However, I would have traded some of those tracks with some materials from the EP (like Parade) or Ode To, or Quiet, or something. Anyway, it was still a great arrangement, with the main set list ending with Sunday Afternoon. We have the original version, the studio version, and the live version. My favorite is the latter, really because of the way the guitar really rips into the melody of the song. The guitarist is also the guy who used to play for John Mayer during his Room for Squares days, and his skills really shone through during this song. I loved how the guitar really added to the pain and anguish that is already embedded within the lyrics, and the song was made even more painful to listen - in a good way - with Rachael's signature smokey voice. Seriously, Rachael probably has one of my favorite voices in music of all time. The way that she sings almost feels like a blunt razor blade through your flesh. I love it.

As some of the fans left the concert hall to grab a place in line outside for the autograph session, Rachael came back onto stage for the encore. Two songs she played, and she still didn't played Ode To (damn). Still, she played Duet and The Reason Why (expectedly), and I thought she pulled it off beautifully despite the fact that Ray Lamontagne wasn't around. It'd be SO COOL if he was though, because I'd seriously kill for his concert. Anyway, he wasn't there, and it was cute to hear Rachael fill in his parts with a much deeper voice. Oh, side tracking a little, I enjoyed her banter about the drunk fan that met her in the backstage and told her about how she had sex with her record playing in the background - classic Rachael, very awesome. I love how natural she is on stage, you know, the way she treats the venue as a little coffee place, and she just goes with her stories and her jokes. Even though she may not pull off the best concerts, she certainly makes up for a lot with her interacts. I love it.

So, post concert, we got in line for the autographs and caught a glimpse of Mwen and Harrison in the queue as well. Like she did the last time, Rachael took her time to sign and chat with every single fan that came along. She's just that nice, though the management was really on their toes because she usually takes a long time. The last time she came, the autograph session that happened afterwards is, apparently, the longest autograph session ever. So I was really glad to be at the front of the line this time, because the sign outside the venue said that it'd only go on for thirty minutes, max. Harrison was all the way at the back, and he kept checking with me how the situation was. Molasses was what I told him, and he worried for his autographs. Personally, I got my notebook and ticket signed, and I am going to give the ticket to Pao who didn't make it for the concert. Rachael also kindly added her name to the ticket, how nice! Anyway, a very good concert indeed, and nice pictures to remember it by! E-mail me, or drop me a message if any one of you wants the pictures, whoever you are.

Set list:

1. Elephants

2. Be Be Your Love

3. What If I Leave?

4. Little Life

5. Faster

6. Worn Me Down

7. Letter Read

8. Elephants (Instrumental)

9. Even So

10. Meet Me By The Water

11. The Only Fault