Sharon van Etten sings at the Secret Garden
If it weren’t for people’s obsession with the process of music, there would be no air guitar tournaments, and years spent fantasizing yourself performing some of your favorite songs would vanish. Some people don’t care to watch the bands on stage as long as they can listen, but for others, the slight movement of hands, the swing of the arms, and the expression of faces that manufacture bits of sound that converge to form music makes a whole lot of a difference (though music videos seem to do the opposite, often distracting you from the music). And sometimes, a song you hadn’t specially cared for finally claims your attention when casually hummed by a friend.
The perfection that is sought for in a studio recording and at a live performance, though to a lesser degree in the latter, often pushes the process to an invisible terrain, in varying degrees. Unfortunately, these processes are allowed to surface only in private moments, barred from the audience. Some of La Blogotheque’s Take Away shows are so fabulous because they’re extremely successful in bringing said process to the forefront (which I find the Black Cab Sessions to do less of), and I believe Vincent Moon’s crew does it unknowingly. Though our videos will be no match to either, it’s this process we’re chasing after, knowingly. For our first baby steps, we are graced by the lovely Sharon van Etten.
Thanks goes out to Enid Crow.
Previously: Wildbirds & Peacedrums played with Sharon van Etten and Adem
