It was great while it lasted. Each previous time I had seen the Great Lakes Swimmers whether at the High Noon, the King Club or the notoriously chatty Café Montmartre, the audiences had been astonishingly silent, achieving “pin drop” status every time. I’m guessing most of tonight’s crowd hadn’t been at those shows or they would have known this is a band you pay complete attention to, talking is not allowed. Despite the angry librarian glares I was doling out all night, it never achieved that scared-to-breath feeling I had become accustomed to.
Of course, it takes some work to find something to complain about at a Great Lakes Swimmers show. It’s hard to describe what exactly it is that is so enthralling about them. It’s mellow, lullaby-like music, yet somehow still catchy. Something about the way Tony Dekker’s ethereal, Neil Young “Helpless” voice spills out without him actually moving his mouth is hypnotic. The chatty crowd didn’t seem to bother them as much as it bothered me- he mentioned several times how happy and honored they were to be playing Madison again. This end of the tour stop seemed to be the highlight of their trip.
There is a new member of the band since the last time they passed through town, and coincidentally enough it is High Noon owner Cathy Dethmer’s cousin. Had I not already known that, I would have been pretty surprised when keyboard player/backing vocalist Julie Fader announced that “my cousin owns this place, isn’t it awesome?” In the end, I found her vocal contributions superfluous; I don’t need to hear anyone singing with Dekker. However she did provide a respite from the pearl snap shirts and beards the rest of the band sported.
The covers were again well chosen, Gram Parson’s “Sin City” was inspired, and did make an argument for Fader’s addition as she filled in the Emmy Lou Harris part. From that earliest show I have compared Dekker to Neil Young, but this was the first time I recall him covering him, and show ender “Harvest” was a perfect, though almost too obvious choice. While the last record Ongiara was even more serene than their previous two efforts, the new Lost Channels borders on poppy. “Pulling on a Line” and “She Comes to Me in Dreams” are as memorable as any songs he’s written.
Once again the band demonstrated an uncanny knack for playing exactly the right songs. The always stunning “Various Stages” early in the set was flawless. The knowing way he states “I have seen you in various states of madness” expresses neither surprise nor concern, just resignation and acceptance. “Moving Pictures/Silent Films” is all the reason you need to pick up their first record. I was disappointed to see that “Imaginary Bars,” the song that made me fall in love with them in the first place, was not on the set list, but too content to complain. Like I said, they know what to play, and it showed up at the end of the night, as if he knew he needed to play it.
After the female opener for the Handsome Family set us scurrying to the patio, I claimed I was pretty sure I didn’t want to see Kate Maki. I was wrong; the petite Canadian was charming and adorable, if perhaps a little too obsessed with age. She seemed to think she was over the hill and couldn’t stop talking about it, but she certainly didn’t look over thirty (because if that is over the hill I’m in trouble). She had commandeered half of the Great Lake Swimmers to be her backing band, and they proved an excellent backing for her Nanci Griffith voice. As she implored the audience to sing along on a song, she claimed that “it was being recorded so you have to,” before adding a giggled “just kidding.” You can find that video on YouTube.
Every time I see the Championship I think “Hey, I like these guys!” and then promptly forget what they sound like, only to be surprised the next time (which, I’ll confess always makes me feel a bit like Dora from Finding Nemo). I had forgotten how gorgeous the lead singer’s voice is, and how awesome the multi-instrumentalist’s mustache is (though I am pretty sure I wasn’t so into mustaches the last time I saw them, because his I would have remembered).
In fact, my only complaint was that they committed the cardinal sin of opening bands, they played too long. Or maybe it just seemed too long because they also made the mistake of saying they had a few more left and then proceeded to play seven more songs. But again, I think maybe I am just looking for things to complain about.
The Championship
Kate Maki
Great Lake Swimmers
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