Acoustic Vaudeville (Aimee Mann & Michael Penn)
Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis (March 13, 2000)
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Aimee Mann
Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis
March 13, 2000 |
"We wanted to be funny, but funny, we were not," Mann told the audience. So they brought along a stand-up comedian, Ron Lynch, to banter for them, in addition to performing an opening act which preceded a longer-than-usual wait between sets.
Musically, Mann and Penn had plenty to say. Serving as sympathetic side musicians for each other, with additional backing from a chamber-folk ensemble of keyboards, percussion, and muted electric guitar, the married duo wore their oft-broken hearts on their respective sleeves for an audience of fervent fans who seemed to recognize every song right from the first note. With perfect acoustics on their side, the artists' bond with the audience was immediate and strong throughout the show.
Those who showed up to hear Mann perform the "Magnolia" soundtrack songs that have fueled her recent career resurgence were likely surprised that only "Save Me" and "Wise Up" from that album made the setlist. But they could hardly have been disappointed, as Mann drew enough gems from her back catalog of well-crafted, painfully personal pop songs to convince neophytes that there's plenty more where those came from.
Despite the current media spotlight on the Oscar-nominated Mann, Penn received equal time at the microphone, proving every bit as adept at distilling vulnerability, pathos and regret from a seemingly endless supply of aching melodies and thoughtful lyrics. Those who remember the hyperactive wordplay of his 1989 debut album, March, will find a new directness and honesty in his work since then, but judging from the audience reception for Penn -- just as strong as that for Mann, but with a slightly higher fanatic quotient -- that's a pretty poorly kept secret.
Between songs, Lynch improvised amusing internal monologues for the singers as they pretended to speak to the audience, and mocked the whole idea of banter with his fondness for portraying entertainers as animatronic theme-park characters. Admittedly, it was a little strange that two songwriters whose music connects so deeply with their audience felt uncomfortable addressing the crowd directly, but the comic bits lightened the emotional weight of a collection of songs that defined the term "bittersweet," without detracting from the music the near-sellout audience showed up to hear.
Mann and Penn proved that they posessed more than a passing sense of humor of their own when it came time for each of them to revisit their "big hit" for which far too many people know them solely. While trading verses with Penn on his "No Myth," Mann chose the final chorus to show off her Ethel Merman impression (the only one she can do, she admits). Not to be outdone, Penn took the mic during an atmospheric reading of Mann's Til' Tuesday hit "Voices Carry" to play the role of the boorish, disapproving yuppie boyfriend from the song's classic video: "Home late from band practice again?...Why can't you JUST ONCE do something for MEEEEEE!"
They can afford to poke fun at these songs, the ones that are still being played on the radio more than 10 years later while their subsequent efforts struggle to make the playlists. Far from the nauseating whirl of heavy rotation, these two artists have built a devoted fan base that, on this night, gave them three standing ovations before the house lights went up. Mann, after years of lousy experiences with record companies, is selling her new album, Bachelor No. 2, from her own Web site at www.aimeemann.com, and Penn's latest release on Epic is cheekily titled MP4. Their A&R men may have said they don't hear a single, but their future is wide open.
MARC WOOD |