10.22.2010 - Ingrid Michaelson
November 18, 2010
Bluebird
Bloomington, IN
Guggenheim Grotto opened for Ingrid at the Bluebird – just a couple of Irish musicians touring around the US for the past 8 months in their very own “Soccer Mom” Chrysler Town & Country mini-van. I was instantly impressed with the depth of their lyrics and really awesome sound. And, as I most always am with artists that have superb speaking-voice accents, I was totally amazed at how that smooth Irish sound seemed to slip away the moment they open their mouths to sing.
They mostly entertained the crowd with songs from their June 15, 2010 release “The Universe is Laughing”, including the title track to that album. They also did a pretty damn amazing cover of “Creep” (as many times as I hear this covered, it never gets old) . Guggenheim Grotto’s version became a completely unplugged version when, after some mic issues, they decided just to step to the front of the stage – one man with a Ukelele, one man on vocals. Their version of “Creep” was pretty impressive, even though The Bluebird certainly isn’t the best acoustic set-up for this sort of thing. I could tell by the looks on the faces in the crowd that everyone loved it.
After a short intermission, six mysterious figures cloaked in black made their way onto the stage. These were, of course, Ingrid and her band mates. One by one, they tossed off the cloaks and opened the show with a cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” leading ever so effortlessly into “Soldier” – which I think is one of Ingrid’s best songs. A few songs into the set, “Die Alone” and Ingrid’s latest single “Parachute” were paired very nicely together. The band also played “Mountain and the Sea” – a great crowd-engaging song (as if Ingrid needs people to be more engaged at her shows) requiring an audience sing-along that everyone is always more than thrilled to contribute to.
After having seen a couple of Ingrid shows now, I know one thing about them for certain – you never know what to expect. Ingrid’s almost as entertaining as a comedienne as she is musically inclined – at one point in the show, she realized there was a small group of people who couldn’t actually see her at the piano courtesy of the way some large speakers were placed onstage. She continued to make goofy comments about what she was doing, how she looked, etc, trying to describe what was happening to those who weren’t fortunate enough to have a view of her and her sometimes quirky movements on the piano bench. Far more unexpected was Ingrid’s solo cover of R.E.M.’s “Night Swimming”, which she learned to play for a special R.E.M. tribute show in New York. Her use of the loop pedal on this song was very impressive – it was haunting and really showcased just how talented an artist she is.
Ingrid closed out the show with what are probably her most famous tunes – “The Way I Am” and “Maybe”. And for anyone who has attended one of her live shows in the recent past – they closed with the cover of Britney Spears’ “Toxic” – complete with choreography! Since backstage was slightly difficult for the band to get to, Ingrid stated that they would just be hiding onstage while the crowd cheered, and then they’d reemerge to play a couple of encore songs. So, just as she stated, the band hid under a cloak behind the piano while everyone cheered and laughed. Sure enough, after a few minutes they popped back out to play “Be Ok” and the punk-rock version of “The Way I Am”.
In short, this was another great night with a couple of great bands. Very engaged crowd, and a surprising amount of the “old like me” (as Ingrid put it) demographic for a bar show in a college town. I saw a majority of people (at least those in the front) singing along to each and every song. The energy at shows full of such loyal fans is always fantastic – you can really tell that people are there to support one of their favorite artists and stay engaged and respectful throughout the show. Go see Ingrid live if you get the chance – I think you really have to experience the show to fully appreciate what she has to offer the music world.
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