1 post tagged “a fine frenzy”

Last weekend, we had the pleasure of seeing Rufus Wainwright in concert at Nokia Theater in Dallas. He clearly is one of the most talented musicians and vocalists of our time, and is also an extraordinary showman/woman. With that in mind, most of us in the audience were probably quite skeptical of the two openers for him. I mean, after all, if you're going to see what afterwards you will swear was the best live show you've ever seen, how GOOD would the opener have to be to get you to not talk during their set, let alone catch your attention?

A Fine Frenzy (aka Alison Sudol and two guys) was that good. It took about two bars of her exquisite piano playing and beautiful voice for the audience to be in an enraptured hush, perched on the edge of their seats. A Fine Frenzy may only be three people, but as Alison told me and my loverly wife after the show, 'We may be small, but we can make a lot of noise!' I think I would be a bit more complimentary myself, and not describe their beautiful and soulful music as 'noise.' From the thunderous applause they showered got after every song, the rest of the audience was certainly in agreement.

The music of A Fine Frenzy is piano and vocal-driven, with Alison providing the skill set on both. Live, they also feature an excellent keyboardist (who had three different synthesizers at our show) and a drummer. Their (only) CD, One Cell in the Sea, which we purchased immediately after their set, features quite a bit of bass guitar also, but really didn't seem to need it live. They say their musical influences range from Coldplay and Radiohead to Ella Fitzgerald and Philip Glass, and it shows in their music, each song having a fresh sound, in addition to masterfully crafted lyrics. My favorite song of theirs, which they did not play in concert, is the title song from the

CD, and starts with the whimsical line:
 

Help me out / Said the minnow to the trout
I was lost and found / Myself swimming in your mouth...

Another song of theirs which is quite excellent, and which they played ever so hauntingly at the concert, is the 'loved and lost' ballad, 'Almost Lover,' the video of which is featured below. Give it a listen. In concert, Alison described it as a song (for herself) about losing someone that you know is the one...and then, in a moment, they leave and all your hopes and dreams of a life with them are over. She said she's been surprised how many people come to her after hearing it and just pour out their own experience of having lost what they thought was their true love. It definitely got me thinking of what a common refrain that story truly is in our lives.

There are a number of talented female artists at the moment, and while some comparisons might be generated, Alison has a sound all her own. Her piano playing is not particularly complex, but it is very appropriate for each song. And her vocals are fresh and smooth, yet she doesn't feel like each song needs to devolve into her singing as loudly as possible at the top of her vocal range.

A Fine Frenzy has the featured free 'Single of the Week' this week on iTunes, the song 'You Picked Me.' It's a fun song, but I don't think it represents their strengths as well as some of the other songs. It's still quite lovely, and my loverly wife really likes it. You will, too, I think, so go get it now. And then, be a friend, and go buy the full album.

We loved seeing A Fine Frenzy, and will be going to see them any chance we get. They belong on tour with Rufus Wainwright, and are not overshadowed at all by his own musical excellence. We love them at our house, and they will be on the playlist for quite some time to come.