The Weakerthans - Photo by Crystal Bahmaie

(Not Really A) Reunion Tour

THE WEAKERTHANS - Webster Hall, NYC – Tuesday, Oct. 30
Anyone sitting shiva for the music industry might want to take note of this show; granted, it’s hard times for bands used to moving millions of units, and it’s only going to get worse. But for those artists who can earn a comfortable living in the five-figure range, times have probably never been better.

Witness the Weakerthans, an alt-country combo from the wilds of Winnipeg in central Canada, who record for an indie label best known for an entirely different genre of music; and yet these tuneful Canucks can sell out one of the largest indie-rock venues in New York City on a Tuesday night, with virtually no opening support. Not bad.

Let me say up front that I’m not a Weakerthans fan. It’s not that I dislike the band, I just don’t know their music. They’re one of those groups that’s slipped under my radar for years, even though friends whose taste I trust and admire proclaim the Weakerthans as one of their favorites. So when the opportunity to see this show came my way (thank you, Epitaph Records,) I took advantage of the opportunity. And wound up watching the show surrounded by about half a dozen pals who were all rapt and singing along for most of the set.

The band is touring to support their first new full-length in four years, Reunion Tour. (You can read the official Jersey Beat review of the CD here.) It's not really a reunion, though, since they never actually disbanded; just took a little time off. As a novice to the Weakerthans, they impressed me as a less affected, less effete Decemberists, a twangier Death Cab, or a happier Bright Eyes. Frontman/songwriter John K. Samson started the band a decade ago, wishing to write more reflective and melodic songs than his sweaty, frenetic punk-rock band, Propagandhi. For this tour, the Weakerthans were a five-piece, augmenting the usual lineup of Samson on guitar/vocals, bass, drums, and lead guitar/keyboards, with guitarist/keyboardist Jim Bryson, who doubled as the opening act; the arrangements were usually more orchestral than “rock,” and the guitarists used their effects pedals to synthesize the sounds of pedal streel and electronics. But I thought it odd that they didn’t bring along another musician or two; the songs seemed to cry out for a violin or cello, a real pedal-steel guitar, or maybe a folksy harmonica.

But that’s almost irrelevant. The real star of a Weakerthans show is the songwriting. Samson’s songs tend to be extended narratives rather than hook-driven pop songs with repeated chrouses; as a lyricist, his attention to detail is impeccable and often arresting. The man does have an odd stage presence though. The band breezed through the hour-plus set with a minimum of banter; no stories, no set ups, very few introductions. Samson clearly expected his audience to already know all the songs. And while he certainly didn’t come across as disaffected or bored, he never seemed very excited to be there, either; mostly, he wore this serene grin that stopped just short of smugness. The crowd seemed to be more excited singing these songs than Samson.

Since the songs were all new to me, I wasn’t singing along, but I was listening intently. Mostly twangy, folksy, and alt-country, the Weakerthans do crank it up to full rock ‘n’ roll mode on a couple of powerful tracks; but even at fever pitch, the band is never anything less than engagingly, almost beatifically melodic. And enough of the lyrics struck a chord that I definitely will be checking out the band’s discography in the coming months. There were a lot of songs in that set I want to hear again and pick over in greater detail. And the next time they come down from Manitoba, I’ll probably be there singing along too.