By: Eamon McGrath
Seeing Will Oldham, who records and performs under the moniker Bonnie “Prince” Billy, in a church was a must-do. Not just for the crisp and near-perfect acoustics – although seeing church rafters and stained-glass windows shake is a sight I’ll never forget – but also for the fact that the venue could not have been more excellently suited for one reason and one reason alone: Bonnie “Prince” Billy is nothing short of a spiritual experience.
Baltimore-based openers Human Bell started things off with a barrage of barely-enjoyable bluegrass-noise, and I prayed that this would not set the tone for the rest of the night. Thankfully, however, the true colors of these two gentlemen shone through and by the time they were inviting members of Oldham’s band one-by-one to share the stage – nay, altar – and deliver a sermon of ear-splitting and earth-shaking Jackie-O Motherfucker-style noise to an audience of skinny, Ray Ban-wearing, and very confused indie-kids, I had firmly established a camp on their side.
What began as an experiment with a trumpet and delay pedals ended in a swirming and bubbling mass of slide guitar, distortion, free-jazz drumming and keyboards as Human Bell bathed their stage in a deep blue and encapsulated the audience in a torrential whirlpool of lush, beckoning drones. For some members of the crowd, this was their baptism into the world of noise, and for others, the influences of this exceptional, improvised, nine-person noise jam were proudly worn like badges on a sleeve. Will Oldham himself crouched in-between the members of Human Bell, and as his band surrounded the three of them, I witnessed a truly glorious moment; all the better when considering how heroically Human Bell managed to pull themselves out of the fire and conclude with as gripping and original a performance as they managed to.
After a brief intermission – probably for the sole purpose of letting the viscous mass of noise, sludge and acoustic folk that was Human Bell sink into you properly – amazement moved aside for anticipation, and a great collective sigh was felt as Bonnie “Prince” Billy emerged from a wall of red curtains at the stage’s rear. Immediately, you were aware that you were in the presence of a legend of indie rock – remember that this was the guy that snapped the cover photo of the landmark Spiderland by Slint – and his humility emanated only in a way that someone of his stature would allow it to. Oldham’s bald head, pot belly and pitch-black painted left eye only added to the mystique, and his band – featuring none other than Azita Youssefi on keyboards – was humble and silent, taking cues from the main man and driving the force of power that is newest release The Letting Go all the way home, as they not only played the album in its entirety, but also in a way that suggested they’d been familiar with it for twenty odd years.
Oldham took his audience through his dark and brooding tales of woe, misery and John the Baptist as he whooped and hollered like a preacher; it was here I had a moment of realization, sitting twenty feet away, when I truly understood the genius of Oldham: Bonnie “Prince” Billy is a songwriter like no other, whose catalogue stretches out ten-plus years, and who chooses not to play songs off of I See A Darkness for the same reasons Bob Dylan should choose not to play “Blowin’ in the Wind.” He has been there, he has done that, and he knows it – and instead of making the “mistakes-of-musical-treadmill” most artists do, Oldham casually ignores the audience’s obnoxious shout-out requests and opts instead to pick the songs he wants to play.
Bonnie “Prince” Billy shows songwriters how it should be done: precise, meaningful, to-the-point, and with the presence of a god. Because when there’s a definite lack of god to be had – in the White House, or in an empty church, for example – who isn’t looking for a songwriter to step up in front of an audience and connect us all with the big “Up There?” And who’s better, who’s more fit for the challenge, than Will Oldham? Nobody, that’s who. And that’s for damn sure.
Location Info:
St. James Place
Artist Info: Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Human Bell
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