Adam Green/Tim Fite/Laura Marling @ Town Hall

Adam Green, the beloved New York singer-songwriter with the deep baritone voice and quirky sense of humor, played his largest headlining show to date last Saturday at Town Hall. When he said on The View that he was playing there, I thought it was the perfect setting for him and it was about time. He may come off as this jokey musician with nonsensical lyrics to Joe Public, but from following his solo career, I knew he takes his music seriously. So, Town Hall suits him fine.

The setlist:

• Festival Song
• Hollywood Bowl
• Broadcast Beach
• I Wanna Die
• Leaky Flask
• Cannot Get Sicker
• Friends of Mine
• Gemstones
• Chubby Princess
• Nat King Cole
• Her Father and Her
• Drowning Head First
• Getting Led
• Be My Man
• Novotel
• Grandma Shirley
• Salty Candy
• Dance With Me
• Morning After Midnight
• Baby's Gonna Die
• Encore: Tropical Island
• Carolina
• Where Not Suppose To Be Lovers
• Jessica

You got to see an Adam Green show for two reasons, to hear your favorite songs and sing-a-long or have a good laugh with him. I hadn't seen Adam live for about four years since the Friends of Mine album, and his performance hasn't changed much. He still likes to goof around on the whole rock star performer thing, so he twitches and jumps like a spaz. It doesn't make the show, but it keep me guessing at what kind of tom follery he'll be up to next.

Above all, I dig Adam for his adorable songs, that, yes, can make you laugh. Whether it's intentional or not that's another story. While his Moldy Peaches partner Kimya Dawson has made music that's more stripped down, Adam gravitates toward more fuller music with strings, backing musicians and gospel singers. He straddles that line from being a serious musician and novelty act. It's no wonder it took Juno to highlight his Moldy Peaches work, because that appealed as a goofball comedy and artsy dramedy. Adam even mentioned that some of the people at the show discovered him because of the movie. I'm thinking 10% maybe. He's always been popular in New York. By comparison, he's playing the much small First Unitarian Church in Philly and Black Cat in D.C on this tour.

The guy has been a prolific music maker. His newest opus, Sixes and Sevens, is his fifth album in six years. Like his previous albums, the songs are short on time, but long on enjoyment. He packs in 22 songs ranging from full-on big pop orchestral tunes like "Morning After Midnight" or simple guitar-backed songs like "It's Fine." What brings me back are those big, catchy songs, all of which he played tonight. "Friends of Mine", "Carolina", "Gemstones," and "Baby's Gonna Die" are the ones that make the kids rush the stage and crowd the aisles. Yeah, all those whipper snappers crowded my side of the floor towards the end. More power to them because the crowd could have used some energy.

As much as I like his music, his sense of humor takes the best of him. I do wonder how much of it is intentional when he falls over the microphone cord twice and everyone gets a good laugh. During one point, his mic became unplugged, leaving the song without a whole chorus as he fiddled with it. His stage banter ranks with the best of them because he answers everyone's random shouts. Some dude screamed, "I love you." Adam responded, "I love you, too. Are you Italian?" Other random lines from Adam: "Any of you people on the guest list? I love guest list people." "This is my drummer .... he's Jewish." My favorite: "I grew up in Times Square. I use to love going to the Dunkin Donuts, so this really brings back memories."

No complaints about the show. His deep baritone voice fits Town Hall well. That same old photo of him as a kid blown up to Citizen Kane-sized proportions gave the show its off-kilter nature. Loved the gospel singers. Loved the setlist since he played what you would expect.

A few side notes. I was seated five people down from supermodel Agyness Deyn, who was also at The Kills show. She dresses like Ducky from Pretty in Pink, which I guess is what the cool kids are wearing these days. Finally, Town Hall is a nice venue, it could be a great venue if it wasn't in Times Square. On a Saturday night, Times Square is a hell hole of tourists. The Cuban Revolution wasn't this frenzied. I know tourism is probably the No. 1 source of income for the city, but people, there are other things that New York offers beyond the six blocks of Times Square. Please discover them so that I'm not poked in the eye while people are pointing at billboards of M+Ms.

It had to be said, now my fabulous pictures.

Tim Fite was one of the opening acts for the night, and he fits right along with the eccentric Adam Green. I knew of Tim when he went by the name Tim Sullivan. He was in the band Little-T and One Track Mike, which is the only band that really ever did anything from my alma mater of Rutgers ... and that's not saying much. As Tim Fite, it's more of a performance art thing he does with animation as scored by him and a guy on a laptop. The music itself is They Might Be Giants merged with Beck hybrid. By itself it is decent enough to check out. His live show is hit or miss with me. He acts like a dink (it's a Rutgers trait, trust me) with all his facial expressions and you get what his shtick is early on. I do like some of his songs live and you get a nice chuckle from time to time. "Let's go out and kill a mother fucker ... Okay, can I finish this sandwich first?" Other times, the country twang degenerate act becomes tired.

The fine new talent from the U.K., Miss Laura Marling, was an excellent edition to the line-up. Her fantastic debut album, Alas, I Cannot Swim, will probably get a Mercury Prize nomination this year. She has a great grasp of harmony. It's an earthy album in that you get images of forests, beaches and any landscape you choose. For now, she's comes off better on the album, then she does live. While it was just her and her guitar, you can focus on her flawless voice. I kind of wished I heard all the elements on the album that made it such a pleasure. I'm sure eventually she's have a backing band. On Saturday, she played six songs to a handful of people who came early. You all missed out a major new talent.

Comments

[J]

Marling came through a few months ago. Caught her at Union Hall. Zero stage presence. She'll be more interesting when she's older.