 |
| Maria McKee played a mid-afternoon set |
[Note: Today, organizers said more than 2,000 people attended and an excess of $100,000 was raised from sponsorship support from local organizations.]
A dozen nationally touring and local music acts all played a part in preserving the past on Saturday during the Balboa Beach Music Festival in Orange County, Calif.
The nine-hour benefit concert,
held at Peninsula
Park, supported the renovation
of Balboa Theater, which was built in 1927, but has been closed for 20 years. Approximately
$4 million is needed to transform it into a viable 300-seat multi-use facility.
Esteemed local concert
promoter Ken Phebus - who brought top notch talent to such O.C. venues as the
Pacific Amphitheatre, Sun Theatre (now Grove of Anaheim) and the Coach House
for decades - initially came up with the event idea before passing away last
April. Phebus frequented The Balboa and always dreamed of seeing
it back in action. He had already put the benefit gears into motion earlier this
year.
Adult contemporary, pop, rock
and folk charting artists Matt Nathanson, Joshua Radin and A Fine Frenzy, plus
Maria McKee from acclaimed 1980s band Lone Justice, Lucy Schwartz, Stacy Clark
and others’ sets were rotated between two large adjacent stages.
Concertgoers (many
with young children in tow) used blankets and small chairs to spread out among
two divided sections on the grass. A sports lounge tent was equipped with several
50” TVs showing the USC football game. Meanwhile, decidedly older benefactors
and sponsors mingled loudly in the VIP area, paying minor attention to the music.
Before New England native Nathanson closed the evening with
a fun, yet impassioned 70-minute, 13-song set, he predicted it would be
“magical euphoria.” That about summed up his duo performance with Aaron Tap.
Both routinely switched from acoustic to electric guitars and sang high-flying
harmonies.
The selections were divided
between last year’s solid Vanguard Records release Modern Love (a top 20
Billboard 200 chart debut) and 2007’s Some Mad Hope. A jaunty “Faster,” riveting
“Run” (recorded with Sugarland), sinister rock of “Mercy,” vibrant poppy vocals
on “Car Crash” and Nathanson’s platinum-selling single “Come On, Get Higher” fared best.
Attentive to the
audience’s comments and movements, Nathanson humorously riffed about scary
movies, dated hairstyles, The Kardashians and lunkheads at a recent Peter
Gabriel show. Some giddy teenaged girls even held up signs about Pitzer College
in Claremont,
his alma mater
While the crowd dwindled
slightly by 9 p.m., the
remainders enthusiastically participated on the Taylor Swift-approved
singer’s usual covers of James’ “Laid,” Prince’s “Little Red Corvette” and segue
into The Monkees’ “Daydream Believer” and Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With
Somebody (Who Loves Me)” amid the spirited “Room at the End of the World.”
Nathanson mentioned driving by the Balboa Theater on his way to the park and
said he hoped to return once the project is finished.
 |
| A Fine Frenzy had fun onstage |
Alison Sudol, the Los Angeles
singer/keyboardist known as A Fine Frenzy, has a massive Twitter following and
is known for crafting Adult pop music that verges on Tori Amos territory.
Her
new Virgin album Pines is quite different. Featuring
appearances by Jon Brion and Jonathan Wilson, the extended, pastoral songs are
an acquired taste and more along the lines of Joni Mitchell.
Despite Sudol’s somewhat perky
demeanor, much of her band’s quiet sundown set was too subdued to compete with
surrounding chatter and noises. A dramatic “Pine Song” and “Avalanches (Culla’s
Song)” were both characterized by fluttering vocals. Once the band wisely stepped
it up a bit, people suddenly seemed to pay more attention.
Electric guitar stabs
provided a much needed jolt of energy on the cabaret-styled “They Can’t, If You
Don’t Let Them,” electronic rhythms and synth washes during “It’s Alive” were
capped off by wails a la Annie Lennox and the exuberant “Now is the Start”
(complete with Sudol’s gestures) made for a dynamic finish.
A Fine Frenzy’s current tour
mate Joshua Radin (they return with Lucy Schwartz on Nov. 16 at the Wiltern) got
his first widespread exposure nearly a decade ago on the TV comedy “Scrubs.”
Once a regular among LA’s Hotel Café singer/songwriter scene, Radin’s entire
2008 CD Simple Times was licensed for
film/TV usage and moved a quarter million copies around the world (he is
big in England). The musician performed at Ellen DeGeneres’ wedding and his new
album Underwater reached No. 2 on Billboard’s folk album chart.
“No Envy, No Fear” launched
the set with some fine Americana
strains. Radin’s hushed vocal delivery on the optimistic “Brand New Day”
recalled Paul Simon as he totally reveled in the music (the dexterous band
utilized harmonium, glockenspiel, baritone guitar and upright bass at various
points). Guest backing vocalist Schwartz provided a welcome female counterpoint
on a few tunes as did Tristan Prettyman.
 |
| Joshua Radin invited two special guests to perform |
Radin reminisced about coming
to OC for Thanksgiving at his grandparents’ house as a kid before the happy-go-lucky
highlight “Let It Go.”
Then he joked it was time to “get back into a
depression” for the eerie, almost jazzy “One of Those Days.”
Later, the Ohioan looked over at the palm trees blowing in the wind and opined about how they
were not indigenous to California.
Other standouts in the excellent set included the bluegrass of “She’s So
Right,” rocking “Ones With the Light,” pensive fan request “I’d Rather Be With
You” and folky, harmonica-laden stomp, “Underwater.”
Singer/songwriter Maria
McKee’s compositions have been recorded by multiple acts over the years (Dixie
Chicks, Feargal Sharkey), she has an impressive resume of guest studio appearances
(U2, Robbie Robertson, Counting Crows, Jayhawks) and several acclaimed solo
albums.
Her latest endeavor is the
indie film “After the Triumph of Your Birth.” Helmed by bassist
bandmate/husband Jim Akin, McKee appears in it and handled the score. The soundtrack CD is available through cdbaby.com.
Right
before taking the
stage, U2 music was being played – an appropriate choice considering
Lone
Justice opened for the Irish band on its “The Joshua Tree” tour. McKee,
born in LA, talked about spending summers in OC, swimming and looking
for phosphorous in
the ocean.
Originally scheduled to play
45 minutes at Balboa, her set started late and wasn’t allowed to go over. A
wonder from start to finish, fans only got to witness a half hour of the
firebrand’s glorious pipes, most notably during the rootsy soul of “I Can’t
Make it Alone,” “Am I The Only One Who’s Ever Felt That Way” and an inviting
“Shelter” (from the same-named 1986 Lone Justice record).
Schwartz had a track featured
on the Twilight: Breaking Dawn soundtrack, has collaborated with Aqualung and
played at the last Lilith Fair. The young Angeleno’s 25-minute performance was
marked by pleasant adult piano pop and highlighted by the idyllic “Gone Away.”
Photos by Miguel Vasconcellos
No comments:
Post a Comment