  
|
 Burlap to Cashmere with Vigilantes of Love and The Wayside October 9, 1999 Trinity International University Deerfield, Illinois By Brett MacAlpine A parking lot dotted with church vans and buses.
The gymnasium of a major Christian college packed with eager faces. All the
parts were in place for an evening of upbeat music with an evangelistic message.
Something different was in store, though. Burlap to Cashmere and Vigilantes of
Love are two bands who got their start expressing their faith outside of the
Christian concert circuit and still feel comfortable being heard over the din of
a packed bar or club. Bringing the two together for this special one-night-only
double bill was a stroke of genius for Chicago area promoters Edan Productions,
even if both bands seemed a little out of their element at times.
Vigilantes of Love's portion of the bill was a testament to the power of perseverance. Lead singer Bill Mallonee confessed early on that they were playing without the benefit of a proper sound check, but it wasn't difficult to tell that things weren't right. Mallonee's vocals alternated from booming on one verse to distant in the next, and Jake Bradley's bass parts were practically inaudible.
Between songs, he seemed to be defying more than
just the acoustics. Unusually talkative, his comments were a pop culture
smorgasbord, making reference to Neil Young, Paul Simon and the Waterboys' Mike
Scott, to name a few. Christ was mentioned, but in the context of Jack Kerouac's
frustrated spiritual searching. Familiar names, perhaps, to some Vigilantes
fans, but probably not to the kids who would be heading for the church buses
after the show. Somebody forgot to tell Mallonee--a native of Athens,
Georgia--that he was far from home in more ways than Burlap to Cashmere's lead guitarist John Phillipidis briefly betrayed a related sense of unfamiliarity with an ill-received wisecrack about singing "Ave Maria" at Christian concerts. Fortunately that moment was the exception rather and the rule. After spending some of the summer as an opening band for more popular artists and having to prove their worth to every audience, they seemed genuinely excited to be playing for a crowd that was willing to shout out requests and offer encouragement.
They were extremely successful, however, with including new songs in the set. Several of them suggest that the band is checking out more adventurous territory than the standard 3-4 minute pop song format. The best of them, "Dialing God," was a hypnotic multi-layered suite of Eastern rhythms and aggressive acoustic guitars. Still, it was the songs from their album, Anybody Out There? that showed why Burlap to Cashmere is such a fantastic live band. Phillipidis, after taking much of the summer off, was back in top form on both acoustic and electric guitar (a new move for the band's live shows). His aggressive, lightning-fast acoustic strumming set fire to "Skin Is Burning" and "Anybody Out There?" Even when the intricacies of the seven-piece ensemble's music was lost in the shoddy gymnasium acoustics (and excruciatingly loud mix), there was no denying the energy and joy that went into the performance.
Saving their biggest hit for last, "Basic Instructions" sent the crowd home singing the words of John 3:16. A song that didn't need any explanation seemed like a fitting end to a concert featuring two bands that let their songs speak for themselves. Set List: The Wayside
Encore:
|
||
|
|
Describing
themselves as "Chicago's favorite opening band," The Wayside got the
evening started with a set of solid, earthy rock with dashes of country twang.
Led by True Tunes magazine/store/club/web site founder John Thompson, they have
seen their share of lineup and style changes over the years. This performance
left no doubt that this is the strongest incarnation of the band to date.
Undaunted,
they soldiered on, picking up steam with each song, drawn mostly from their most
recent release, Audible Sigh. Guitarist Kenny Hutson survived the
sound mix mostly unscathed, adding scorching lead parts on top of the
rootsy rock and roll foundation laid by the band. His mandolin playing was the
highlight of the concert, especially a solo on "She Walks On Roses"
that made one wonder if that wasn't a rocket launcher slung over his shoulder.
If anyone in the band needed encouragement, they needed only to turn their heads
to catch a glimpse of the million-watt smile on drummer Kevin Heuer's face that
made the spotlights look dim. Mallonee continued to sing with hard-hitting
conviction, perhaps in defiance of the hostile acoustics.
Without
an opening act's time constraints, they took the opportunity to stretch things
musically. Several extended percussive instrumental interludes were used to make
one song flow into the next, with mixed results. Some effectively
connected the musical ideas of different songs. However, the oppressive feel of
the music played to start the show bled over into the opening song, dragging
down the usually bouncy Mediterranean pop of "Digee Dime." They also
didn't seem to know when to quit in the frantic, overly long ending of
"Young Son." "It's been a long tour," was lead singer
Stephen Delopoulos's sheepish explanation.
"Mansions"
was the highlight of the set, not once, but twice. The full band version early
in the show was an energetic celebration, and would have made for a
wonderful closing song. The wisdom of playing it early became apparent at the
start of the encore, when Delopoulos returned to the stage to briefly explain
how the song was written as a cry to God for help. He played it again,
accompanied only by his guitar and Josh Zandman's piano, and proceeded to
completely change the mood and meaning of the song. The chorus of, "Love
me, light me, give me, guide me," now became a wrenching plea for
salvation. Thanks also to Delopoulos's aching vocals, it was a truly remarkable
transformation.