After a long time of passing up going to New Pornographers shows, mostly because of high ticket prices but also a subconscious fear that their tendency to write the same song over and over (with a handful of notable exceptions) might just make the show one long power pop opus, I finally made the commitment.  July 19, 2010 at the Music Box at the Henry Fonda.  Night One of Two.

Openers Imaad Wasif and The Dodos did a good job of prepping the crowd as well as setting the tone for the evening–it would be one dominated by musicality and complexity within the songwriting equation.  Imaad Wasif, hitherto known to me only by name, provided a lot of guitar stylings informed by Led Zeppelin in their Middle Eastern period.   His long shaggy coif (not pictured here) only added to that impression.

The Dodos’ wall of sound approach to filling out the sounds made by their three members was accomplished by what I know as the Andrew Bird foot pedal looping and an innovative use of the xylophone.  They created a complex sound with underscored vocals that further led the way for the act they were opening for.

The New Pornographers–What is there really to say?  Neko was great, if a bit haggard looking–not that you could tell from her vocals on concert highlights like “Challengers.”  Dan seemed a bit out of it, disappearing frequently and reappearing with beers, but was spot on in crowd favorite “Myriad Harbor” among others.  Their music speaks for itself: complex songwriting coupled with the band’s signature power pop.  The emphasis was definitely on the songs themselves over the vocals, a trend started early in the evening that found its finish in an inspiring rendition of “Bleeding Heart Show” with equal parts “Hey La”, complex songwriting, jangly guitars, and building momentum, but all parts pop magic.