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CONCERT REVIEW: Damien Jurado @ Johnny Brenda's 5/20
Jurado and his touring band played a lively set with a looseness that can only be attained by the most practiced musicians.
CONCERT REVIEW: Damien Jurado @ Johnny Brenda's 5/20
For 15 years, Damien Jurado built a solid reputation as a no-frills folk-rocker. However, 2010’s Saint Bartlett marked a shift, continued in the most recent Maraqopa, towards songs with varied instrumentation and rich atmosphere. It’s safe to assume that this sea change has a lot to do with Richard Swift. Although Swift is credited as a producer on Jurado’s most recent albums, his role is closer to that of a collaborator. Jurado’s Americana vocals and guitar tones remain, but they are now complemented by Swift’s backup croons and keyboard flourishes. So when I saw Jurado take Johnny Brenda’s stage with a backing band that did not include Swift, I became a little worried.
Boy were my fears misplaced. Jurado and his touring band played a lively set with a looseness that can only be attained by the most practiced musicians.
“Nothing is the News” set the tempo for the first half of the show, which consisted of rousing selections from Maraqopa. Even the subdued “Everyone a Star” was given a wicked guitar solo. Despite his professed hatred for rock shows, Jurado seemed to be having a great time – even jumping into the crowd at one point to stomp and clap to the beat of the band.
At one point Jurado sang a few bars from the viral video “IMDABES.” Later he expressed relief that Philly was a much more relaxed city than their previous stop on the tour: New York. One band member christened our city “Chilladelphia.
”The band stayed for three “psychedelic freakout jams” which concluded with the sing-along “Let Us All In” before departing. Jurado stayed to play “Rachel & Cali,” “So On, Nevada” and “Ghost of David” solo. This portion of the set was more somber in tone, but kept the same earnest passion that characterized the rest of the evening.
People talk about how Jurado’s newest songs are his most experimental. Last night, he and his band made them look natural while keeping an aura of excitement that suggested they were playing these songs for the first time.
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