Mr. Blunt, 06

I'm not quite sure what or how exactly I feel about the James Blunt concert that occurred roughly four hours ago. This man is so darn talented, and he knows how to go for the jugular with heart-wrenching genuineness, but that makes it all the more disappointing when he falls back into the jaws of media legerdemain.

But let's start at the beginning. Starsailor was an absolutely fabulous opening act. They found an irrepressible source of energy that actually surpasses the versions on their album "On the Outside". James Walsh's burnt sugar voice belted out in a manner that threatened to crack a few ribs in his skinny frame, nicely accented by the band's heavily rhythmic sound. He was the only one of the band that said anything, and he kept the adlib to a minimum, letting the powerful music speak for itself. The band as a whole was lacking a bit of charisma, but given that they had just finished an earlier show at the Crocodile Cafe, they have a valid excuse for being a bit bushed. Because of the lack of chit chat, the songs often blurred together. At one point I realized that they had changed songs a few minutes before, and I hadn't noticed. This is a band that never met a 4/4 tempo they didn't like, but Walsh's voice had enough grit and flavor to keep the audience interested. It will be curious to see if this exposure gives them the push they need to become more recognized in the mainstream. Their single "In the Crossfire" has gotten some playtime, but this is a band that definitely deserves more recognition.

After a very, very long soundcheck, during which several people drifted in late (and the place still wasn't full?), James Blunt and his band took the stage. In true rock star style, Blunt ran on with the typical wide-eyed-on-caffiene-and-something-else-possibly expression and proceeded to groove on the first of many new songs. He's kept the blues tinged rhythms that make Bedlam more than the sum of his first single, but lyrically, it seems he's headed into a jaded area of his creative mind with lines like "Scratch that mild skin/Wasting time like it just doesn't matter very much/So we're happy for the company."

In spite of that cynical start, Blunt jetted through all of the songs from "Back to Bedlam" plus a few new audience pleasers, such as a surprisingly slick cover of Supertramp's "Breakfast in America." Other unreleased singles included "Annie," an exceedingly dry commentary on fame and fortune, or the lack of it, "I can't hear the music," and "1973," where I swear he was channeling a younger Elton John. "I Really Want You" was a tale of love and loss that somehow avoided melodrama in spite of lyrics that look incredibly trite in text - "Wasted time on the silver shores of paradise/Can I come in from the cold?/Killed a man in a faraway land."

There were also some beautiful moments in the Bedlam set. "Tears and Rain" was a standout. Mr. Blunt, front and center stage in a lone spotlight, guitar loosely slung around his waist with his hand lightly gripping the neck, singing his heart out as the piano riffled mellifluously.

So, musically the night was spot on. Even Blunt's obvious voice fatigue lent itself to an organic feel as the night grew long. But it is precisely that organicness, that inexplictly stated but nonetheless present artistic morality, that resulted in the concert feeling uneven. Known for his former military career in Kosovo and strong political/moral stances (the trailer for An Inconvenient Truth was played right before he started), Blunt has built himself an image as the sensitive guy next door that not only cares about world issues and can really sing but can also probably kill you with his ring finger. The concert really hit home tonight how much of that is image, showmanship, and very good PR.
The best example of this was when he played his pathos-packed "No Bravery," which no matter how you slice it, is unsympathetic towards the killing of civilians for the sake of war, any war. He gave a little disclaimer before he started about how short our collective memories really are, and that when he went back to Kosovo a few months ago, nothing had really improved since this issue was the media's favorite poster child. Then as he played the song, appearing to mean every word and every note, personal footage of the carnage and orphans was projected on the backdrop. There was utter quiet, even during the soft instrumental parts. For a few brief moments, there were no "Marry me James" yells or other foolish catcalls. The audience was absorbed in his haunting experience with human cruelty and misery, and it was a powerful absorbtion.
Yet, mere moments after finishing, Blunt grabbed his guitar and started a peppy instrumental that would quickly segue into "By the Sea." The too quick transition reminded me of the "Now This" phenomenon in news broadcasts - Oh look at the refugees in Darfur, how depressing. Now this commercial for Clorox!
I understand that social commentary doesn't sell the boatloads of tickets that being a cute Brit with decent teeth does, but that transition undermined everything he was trying to say about the shortness of our memory. It would have been great, nay, mind-blowing, if instead of ending the concert with the sappy "You're Beautiful," he had taken the road never traveled and ended by giving the audience a hard dose of reality to think about on the way home.