James Yorkston
"THIS gig could easily become one big joke," laughs James Yorkston during the first performance of his new tour in support of ‘When The Haar Rolls In’.
Onstage the audience can see the haggard face of a tired and weary man who by his own admission smells faintly of baby sick.
Yorkston now has a six-week-old daughter to take care of and consequently hasn’t picked up a guitar in some time.
Despite the new demands in his life, James still demands absolute attention once he begins to play.
Transforming a chattering venue into silent, spellbound spectators is no easy accomplishment armed only with an acoustic guitar.
Sweeping chords
As James plays the sweeping chords of ‘Temptation’ and sings the harrowing lyrics which set the accompanying mood, you could hear a clichéd pin drop.
In fact at one stage a beer bottle hits the floor and smashes adding to the tension as the chorus kicks in.
Without ‘The Athletes’ backing, the performance is incredibly intimate and the lyrics take an unprecedented priority.
'Shipwreckers’ provides an opportunity to escape briefly into the rural imagery which colours much of James writing.
The epic song ‘When the Haar Rolls in’ creates another idyllic scene to become lost within.
Amid the applause requests are taken prompting ‘Fox Regrets Hare’ and ‘Queen of Spain’ to make a delightful appearance.
The main reason for the intimacy of the performance is Yorkston’s jovial nature.
Tired
Despite being obviously tired he is easily able to entertain the crowd with his sense of humour and create a friendly atmosphere.
His comic traits at times threaten to descend the gig into chaos, having to restart a few of his songs many times due to spontaneous laughter.
It being his first gig in a long time James is prone to a few errors.
Luckily though being able to coax a warm reaction from the crowd enables him to get off lightly.
The rendition of ‘Steady as She Goes’ is far from flawless but he is able to laugh off any slip-ups.
These little imperfections are what in the end make the night so special.
Watching a drunken rabble become enchanted by a sincere soloist is a humbling sight to behold.
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Reviewed: Thu, 20 November, 2008
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