Antony and the Johnsons + Johanna Constantine- The Moore (Seattle, WA; February 28, 2009)

I confess I’ve been looking forward to this show since it was announced. I was curious how the album sounds would manifest visually in their show, hoping perhaps for some colorful images or performers to accompany the small symphony. The visual art did not, however, accompany Antony and the Johnsons, but instead came before in the form of muse Johanna Constantine. 

Constantine entered the stage to some deep vibration sounds, draped in a gauze-type robe, looking precariously balanced on enormous platform shows as she slowly made her way to center stage. Her movements slowly progressed to the removal of all of her clothing, revealing black and red body paint outlining her eyes and otherwise making her look skeletal. After pouring additional thick brown and red liquid down her front, Constantine gripped what looked like short papier-mâché crutches (or long unicorn horns) in each hand and proceeded to spin these around and use them to balance on four points. Briefly leaving the stage, she re-emerged sporting a twig and skull headdress and Wolverine-meets-Edward-Scissorhands claws, which she swiped through the air in a snatching motion. The whole effect silenced the mainly over-30 crowd, who seemed to take in the performance with a mixture of confusion and solemn nods.

Transitioning from the visually striking Constantine, Antony and the Johnsons took the stage dressed in sharp black clothing in almost total darkness, illuminated only by the clip-on music stand lights and a partial light on Antony Hegarty. Commanding the “spotlight” from the start, there is no question that Antony is clearly the “conductor” and spokesman of the group. All others sat in rapt attention waiting for Antony’s eye contact to signal precisely when to begin playing, offering no interruption or thoughts on his interplay with the crowd. This included mainly affectionate (yet slightly annoying) shouts about how much Seattle loves him and one “Fuck Beyonce” after they played “Crazy in Love,” which most of the crowd didn’t recognize until Antony began the chorus. Though we all recognized the comment as more of a “Your version is amazingly better,” Antony responded, “Who would say that? I mean, I know you are kidding, I hope. But I think she’s kinda sacred.” This was followed by some improvisation on keys and vocals, “Why is an African-American girl like a star…?” Antony also shared a few brief musings on large redwood trees, his family’s immigration from Ireland, and, in one of my favorite moments, when he mentioned something like, “I made a mistake. Did you catch it? I missed a chord. Yeah I did that. Should I start over? Hmm, but let’s move on. Its not like it’s horse jumping.” Seconds later, elbow propped on the piano, head tilted into his hand, he began to sing “Blame it on the Rain” slowly and playfully, pausing between lines as if he was searching for something else to say. During this and his few other covers (Bob Dylan’s “I Was Young When I Left Home,” e.g.) Antony turned his face to the crowd and offered a few smiles, but during most of the evening his attention was focused across the long expanse of the piano toward the rest of the group.

Previously, I might have agreed with the description of their music as “hauntingly beautiful” but after seeing them live, I think I’ve changed my opinion to just “beautiful.” I’m not sure if it’s the new themes on the recent release The Crying Light (heavily featured at the concert), the smile present on Antony’s face, the lightening of the mood with gentle banter or the company of others competing with the assumed loneliness, but the energy of the evening’s somehow didn’t feel melancholy at all. The band played with a controlled precision that showcased one of the things I like best about them: their ability to demonstrate that less can be more. This is demonstrated by their choice to often start songs with minimal piano chords or solo clarinet but later adding percussion and some furious bowing from the string section. Noticeable too on this recent tour is the added presence of guitar on many songs, including a messy, bad-ass electric guitar solo from Mr. Doug Wieselman emanating from behind the string section on “Fist Full of Love.” Antony’s falsetto sounded similarly alluring live as it does on the albums, with a few changes to tempo, a few “choked up moments,” and an elongated vowel here and there. Their choice of set list, featuring a mix of older tunes (which drew the loudest cheers) and recent The Crying Light material also highlighted another thing I love about them: their ability to bring in diverse influences, yet sound remarkably distinct. Antony’s voice is unmistakable, particularly live: he sounded lots less like others you might hear echoed on the albums—e.g. Jeff Buckley or Nina Simone. His ultra-tight band made seamless transitions between the folksy “I Was Young When I Left Home” the jazzy “Shake That Devil” to the gospel-sounding “For Today I Am a Boy” and “Everglade,” which sounds like it’s straight out of a Broadway musical. My companion for the evening even mentioned that the opening “Where is My Power” (a B side off the Epilepsy is Dancing single) reminded him of Seal and later murmured the words “Bob Seager” during a more rockin’ tune. But I could go on and on . . . . Overall, I can’t speak highly enough of Antony’s astonishing voice and the performance the entire group put together—go see them for yourself!

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Go buy them for yourself!

Antony and the Johnsons: The Crying Light | I Am a Bird Now | Antony and the Johnsons

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