“Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.” – Frank Zappa
As Damien Jurado and his band mates (Kyle Zantos on guitar and iPad, Barry Uhl on keys, Brad Stemke on drums and percussion, and Jesse Hurlburt on bass) took the stage, I had no idea of what we were in for. I was interested to see him with a backing band but could not have predicted what would take place over the next hour and a half. The first clue should have been the absence of a chair and the presence of a fully upright mic in Jurado’s spot.
The show opened with “Nothing Is The News” and cranked through “Life Away From the Garden,” “Maraqopa,” “This Time Next Year,” “Reel to Reel,” “Working Titles,” “Everyone a Star,” and “Museum of Flight” from his most recent release Maraqopa. The band played with incredible energy as Jurado performed with an intensity that I haven’t seen from him live (with the exception of “Ghost of David” from his previous show at the Earl as captured by William Haun). His vocals were particularly strong and were contoured with both reverb and effects appropriately applied by Zantos through an iPad. While the Maraqopa portion was incredible, the best was yet to come.
At one point, Jurado stood on the subs and declared that the midnight church service was underway and we were invited to join the celebration with hand clap percussion as he called for all to have an open doorway to seek shelter from the storm. He made it clear that we were witnessing a seismic musical shift for him as he was shedding the weight of the depressed singer-songwriter we had all grown to love in favor of a man set free to make a joyful noise and dance about with abandon. Some laughed nervously, maybe in hopes that he was kidding, but he grew more emphatic that this was the start of something new and freeing for him and for those who truly appreciate his growth as an artist.
To show that he was transitioning gradually thus making the change less stark, he came back out and played “Rachel and Cali” and “Sheets” solo before unplugging altogether to step out into the crowd to close with “Arkansas.” As the house lights came up, all I could say was, “Wow…” knowing that I had just been privileged enough to see the progressive transformation live.