Azure Ray + White Hinterland - Mississippi Sudios (Portland, OR; Jul. 10, 2009)

For the first time in five years, Azure Ray took the on-tour stage. Sharply attired in complimentary dresses (Maria Taylor in blue with while polka dots and brown collar, Orenda Fink in brown with white polka dots and blue collar) and trendy leather boots, the ladies of Azure Ray treated a mostly full Mississippi Studios to a host of melancholy dreamy indie pop, with a couple of new songs thrown in for added excitement.

As Fink and Taylor took their positions stage center, a tattooed fellow in his mid-twenties remarked, behind me, “It’s always kind of sexy when a girl’s left-handed.” He was referring to Taylor, who is indeed left-handed. But tonight, Taylor and Fink were more playful than sultry as they familiarized themselves with the stage once again. Fink told me before the show that they had only practiced for this tour the two days prior. There wasn’t any noticeable rust though, as they opened with the first track from their eponymous debut, “Sleep.” Ethereal and beautiful, “Sleep” had couples throughout the audience squeezing hands and exchanging adoring glances.

Although Azure Ray kept the audience transfixed for most of their set—particularly on the heartbeat-driven “Rise” and the delicately balanced “Displaced,” on which an emphasized wobbly guitar perfectly accented Taylor’s gentle vocals—they kept the between song banter light and playful. Taylor warned the audience before “If You Fall” that she had never played it on the piano before. And then she and Fink noted that perhaps the audience recognized the piece from it’s inclusion on the gay porn movie “Short Bus;” they were disappointed it was not played during an “action” scene. Ha.

Taylor and Fink, both on electric guitar, were supported by three attractive gentlemen, respectively manning guitar, bass, and occasional drums and keyboard. The group played “Blackout Curtain” by Andy LeMaster (Now It’s Overheard) to open the encore. This was followed by a new Azure Ray song, “On and On.” Sporting a slightly heavier sound, “On and On” also conveyed a more optimistic lyrical tone than their previous work. Azure Ray finished their set with another new song ("Unannounced"?) and the familiar and lovely “November.” Despite some vocal audience whining, no second encore was forthcoming. However, a new Azure Ray album is in the works, with a handful of songs already in demo stage. Very good news!

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention White Hinterland’s captivating opening set. I saw White Hinterland back in Boston a year and a half ago, but had forgotten the primal urgency of their music. Casey Dienel’s voice is slightly childlike—sweet and sometimes piercing—even though it was hard to understand much of what she was saying/chanting, whether it was in English or French. Shawn Creeden stood intently behind a self-constructed cubicle, manning the tapes and percussion, which provided the deep beats and sometimes melodics rhythms that fueled their music. Very cool stuff.

DOWNLOAD: Azure Ray - Rise (MP3) or Follow us for more Azure Ray MP3s (Twitter)

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