Slowly Going Bald

Just to get the obvious out of the way up front: Seeing Kasey Chambers live is a pretty fantastic experience.

I caught her Wednesday night at Hotel Cafe as part of a brief U.S. tour to promote Rattlin' Bones, which has been out for a little while in Chambers' native Australia but is just seeing stateside release this month. It's a fantastic record — my favorite song might be "Once in a While", but really, it's hard to pick — so I was excited to get to see her tour behind it. But more than just plug the new record, she and husband Shane Nicholson, with whom she recorded the new album, put on an amazing show that featured deep album cuts from her older stuff. Her dad, Bill Chambers, was there playing and singing backup like he's been doing for a while, and watching the three of them play together was wonderful. Their harmonies are fierce, and they opened up with an acappella version of "I Still Pray" that almost made me lose control. She did "Still Feelin' Blue" and talked about her love for Gram Parsons and Carter Family stuff; she did "Last Hard Bible," a rootsier version of "Barricades & Brickwalls" that still had Bill on electric guitar; and she did a gorgeous piano arrangement of "The Captain" that, among other things, reminded me of John's observations about an artist doing two drastically different but equally impressive versions of their own work.

I've included a partial set list below (blame the fact that I don't know all of Nicholson's songs), as well as videos where available. She's playing a few other dates soon, including an in-store show at Amoeba and a concert in Austin, so at the risk of writing something that's gonna be dated in just a little while, I strongly encourage my friends in Austin/central Texas to catch her at the Cactus Cafe in Austin on Sept. 13, which is this Saturday, if you can make it. You will enjoy every song and leave a better person.

As for me, I was just happy to see her live. Who knows how often she'll tour the States, let alone play the kind of venue in L.A. that weeds out anyone who doesn't know about this kind of music. Sometimes I think Los Angeles is the best place to live if you like really good country and alt-country; you're in a devoted minority, and you get shows as amazing as this one.

Set List:
I Still Pray (a cappella)
Last Hard Bible
On a Bad Day
Still Feelin’ Blue
Short Fuse, Part 2 (Nicholson solo)
Rattlin’ Bones
Wildflower
Monkey on a Wire
The Captain (on piano)
These Pines
Barricades & Brickwalls
Sleeping Cold
Pony
One More Year
Woe Is Mine