Neko Case - Live from Austin, TX

Can you really have too much of a good thing? I know, I know -“moderation in all things.” It’s a concept that has its roots in many religious traditions, but what’s so wrong with a bit of indulgence in something really excellent? If something is of superior quality, shouldn’t I want to get all of it that I can? I can’t help but think that I’d be better served by finding a way to obtain any and every scrap of goodness possible. But then again, I’ve been wrong before…

So, when I heard that Austin City Limits was releasing a live album that Neko Case (sultry-voiced solo artist who also moonlights with the Vancouver band The New Pornographers), I was rather excited. Having come across her work (she sounds like throatier version of Patsy Cline, but with red hair!) when she released her 2006 album, Fox Confessor Brings The Flood, I spent the rest of the year accumulating all of her other releases, much to my enjoyment as an audiophile, but to the chagrin of my frequently depleted savings account. Every album of hers stood up tall on its own as a work of fine musical craftsmanship - Ms. Case’s songs pay homage to the country of the 1940s, ’50s, and ’60s, but are by no means derivative or copy-cattish.

And besides, ACL has set the standard amongst folk/country/rock singers and fans for decades now by bringing forth the best and brightest from mainstream, used-to-be-mainstream, and underground music. Bands from across the globe consider it an extreme honor for ACL to invite them to traverse its hallowed stage and fill its amphitheater with their songs.

Nevertheless, with everything that could go right for this album - high musical visibility and notoriety for Neko in the past year, playing in a historic venue, and singing a fabulous set of songs - Live From Austin, TX falls rather flat. No, Neko doesn’t turn in a poor performance by any stretch of the imagination, but the whole set never really clicks.

If I’m going to place blame, there are two possibilities that stand out from the pack. The first issue is that, through no fault of her own, Neko’s voice simply drowns out the instrumentation and her backup singer - poor production and mixing made things seem rather out-of-balance. And the second culprit is that the instrumentation itself was a bit too sparse - at the most there was an acoustic guitar, pedal steel, and upright bass. It’s one thing to showcase Ms. Case’s voice, but another thing to make her sing seemingly a cappella for much of the album. As lovely and beautiful as her voice is throughout these songs, there’s just too much of Neko (blasphemy?!?) and not enough of the band.

Did I enjoy the album? Sure I did - the songs “Favorite”, “Deep Red Bells”, “Hex”, and “Look For Me (I’ll Be Around)” were standout tracks that aptly displayed Neko’s vocal and stylistic range. Also, we learn that the song “Maybe Sparrow”, which made its first album appearance on FCBTF, was actually birthed three years earlier. It was interesting to hear how the song was first performed and how it ended up later in its life.

But, in general, when you compare this live album (originally recorded on August 9, 2003) with her previous live album The Tigers Have Spoken (recorded in Toronto in 2004 and released on Anti- Records that same year), you find that this new release pales in comparison - the energy of TTHS surges throughout that album, while there are often more ebbs than flows on LFAT. So, while I have no doubt that other dorky music fans like me will have already purchased Live From Austin, TX, if you’re needing an introduction to Neko Case’s material and style, I would suggest almost any of her other albums.

Rating: 5.8

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