Courtney Barnett: One Night Only
From Where I’m Standing: Live from the Royal Exhibition Building
by John Noyd
Posted: Dec 2020
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Courtney Barnett: Live from the Royal Exhibition Building
Thursday, December 17th Courtney Barnett reassembles her band and premieres their one night only livestream; From Where I’m Standing: Live from the Royal Exhibition Building. In a pre-show interview Barnett admits the band’s under-rehearsed, she prefers writing to performing and has been known to write songs that languish unfinished… but she also loves a challenge, was eager try out some new material and get back together with her band. After years of non-stop touring, Barnett’s time off made the prospect of playing live again exciting and gave her the time to finish songs she had accumulated during the solo tour she was on just before everything stopped. A shy person at heart, Barnett felt playing a big hall without an audience worked to her advantage, giving her a better chance to focus and pour her energies into the songs.
Both times I saw Courtney perform I was awestruck by her scathing guitar skills. While her beat-poet flows harnessed to folksy notions turn heads and drop jaws, to see her spill out those knotted lyrics while knocking out twisty riffs and banging solos is a sight to behold. Bringing back old cohorts Bones Sloane on drums and Dave Mudie on bass, Courtney recently added Lucy Waldron on cello for a show that is certain to rumble and roar in poignant choruses, quick-change refrains and curving verses.
Listening to her albums in preparation for the livestream event, I marveled how relevant Barnett’s tales of isolation had become in a year of lockdowns and quarantines. Her attempts to make sense and connect to something in this world hit home in ways I couldn’t have imagined when they first came out. Don’t miss this opportunity to revisit old favorites, catch a few covers and hear some new songs. For tickets and information visit http://dice.fm/artist/courtney-barnett-z6a2