I would really feel shitty if I didn't tell you, the internet, about something that occurred to me last night at The Juan Maclean show at JB's. It was pretty obvious that the majority of the crowd knew the show was special. But I don't think anyone had seized on why the show was so amazing, or moreover I don't know if anyone who heard what I heard last night could. I little bit of background info about myself, I was weened on jazz, bebop jazz. As good as the refrains were, bebop was all about the solos. Bebop completely seizes your attention because you have no idea what direction the musician is going to take you, what note comes next. Now you have to know the Juan's songs inside and out to catch it, but the live versions are packed with the same spontaneous improvisation of bebop jazz.
First Juan's theremin riffs were spectacular-- so happy he kept it a part of the show. Though they were minor, the riffs on oldies "Tito's Way" and "Give Me Every Little Thing" should have been greatly appreciated by those who attended prior Juan shows. They took it to another level for "You Can't Have It Both Ways" and they took it even higher for "Happy House." For what I can make of it, "Happy House" is a redemption song of sorts, a track that is very personal. Maclean and co. poured their souls into it's live rendition. They played the first eight minutes of the song note for note to perfection, and then launched all of us into space with to my best guess a ten minute jam that builded and builded and builded and builded and builded, you get the idea, and then exploded, and then cooled off and then went back up one more time for the close. Crowd and band were wiped out. Everything was given to the song and the moment. It amazes me that The Juan Maclean attempts this kind of performance so much. I couldn't imagine performing a set like that more than once a week.
Like all DFA live shows, the sound was impeccable. The lights were shitty, but at a small venue like JB's, you knew it was going to be the one downer going in. It's too easy to criticize Nancy's vocals. Listen to what she is saying and you'll understand why she's so phlegmatic. When she belted, she's no Beyonce, but she did well. Hey another idea, and i'll leave you with this: the entire DFA collective gets together with Beyonce and makes a disco record.
