New Pornographers / Galaxy Theater

September 4, 2005

OK I lied. There was one more August concert that I went to. Coinciding with the release of Twin Cinema, the New Pornographers were in town for a few promotional instores and a live performance on KCRW’s “Morning Becomes Eclectic.” Already in town, the Pornographers squeezed in a real show at the Galaxy Theater in suburban Santa Ana.

The New Pornographers were in good form all night. Kurt Dahle stood out on drums, a clown prince behind the kit with a littany of stick tricks and playing many fills one handed so that he could glug a beer with the other. Carl Newman was regularly off key, but everything else sounded good, if a tad ragged. The newest material popped a little more in the live setting, with “Sing Me Spanish Techno” and “Bleeding Heart Show” having immediate singalong potential.

This was the softcore New Porn lineup, without alt-country chanteuse Neko Case. Touring without Case was a controversial decision amongst fans, but Carl Newman has a nice touch for picking female vocalists, grabbing Coco Culbertson for a Neko-lite role in his solo project and now using his own niece Kathryn Calder for parts on Twin Cinema. Taking Calder on tour was a gamble, and most waited with bated breath to see if that would pay off. On backup vocals she was fine, but she excelled when given the spotlight, knocking “All For Swinging You Around,” “Mass-Romantic” and “Letter to an Occupant” out of the park.

The eventual full tour will be a three ring circus of New Pornography, with the current lineup augmented by both Neko Case and Dan Bejar, bringing the count to a hard eight. Calder will remain on keyboards and backup vox, and “Three or Four” with Calder and Case dueting should be phenomenal. Opening for the band will be Dan Bejar as Destroyer, and Calder’s other band Immaculate Machine, rounding out a lineup that is as incestuous as it is pornographic.

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