It felt more like an intimate gathering of friends and like-minded individuals than a musical performance. Instead of speaking down from the stage, the performers conversed with the audience, each song prefaced with an explanation of its motive.
The talented musicians, complemented by proficient sound engineering, provided a comfortable listening experience. As I later learned as a subsequent performance, frontal speaker placement at the expense of the artist’s having monitors was key to ensuring balanced sound.
The songs themselves were a celebration of times, places, and emotions, on the brink of their existence. Some were old folk standards, others drinking songs, yet others politically motivated satires. All songs instilled a sense of community, inspiring reflection concerning one’s sense of self, and how this identity is guided by the changes, pressures, and experiences of the surrounding society. To ease the pain of this mental effort, all sorts of beverages were provided free of charge (including alcohol), solidifying the already present sense of comfortable camaraderie. We were only one step away (free tickets) from leaving the construct of capitalism altogether, and perhaps we all wished for that to happen. Nevertheless, in conjunction with the night’s theme of cherishing the past and looking to the future, we must admit that as society evolves, so do the requirements for those living within it.
演出場地：A House