Jason Isbell is, for me, one of the foremost musical artists in the world, regardless of genre. A wonderful singer/songwriter, who tackles issues others shy away from, a wry chronicler of hearts and relationships, and a sumptuous guitarist in his own right, no two gigs are the same.
I watched him perform unaccompanied and with a band, presenting, perhaps, a more mellow sound.
Tonight, there is an emphasis on the rockier side of Isbell’s output. The crowd at the Ulster Hall are treated to a two-hour fest of Southern rock, at times the long guitar duels between Jason and Sadler Vaden, reminiscent of Lynyrd Skynyrd at their peak.
Songs from last year’s acoustic ‘Foxes in the Snow’ have been beefed up to a band arrangement, ‘Gravelweed’, ‘Crimson and Clay’, and ‘Bury me’ fit seamlessly in a night of highs.
‘24 Frames’ sounds fresh and vibrant –
“You thought God was an architect, now you know
He’s something like a pipe bomb ready to blow
And everything you built is all for show, goes up in flames
In 24 frames”
And there are little musical ‘pipe bombs’ and explosions throughout the night.
Album staples and favourites from his vast back catalogue with the Drive-by Truckers, with the fabulous 400 Unit, and his solo albums are all on display with their ample charms tonight.
Some might contend that the nuanced and tender readings of his more poignant songs on darker matters had been somewhat blurred by the rockier approach on the night. However, I defy anyone listening to the superb ‘If We Were Vampires’ (one of the finest songs written in the last ten years), to remain unmoved:
“And give you every second I can find, and hope it isn’t me who’s left behind
It’s knowing that this can’t go on forever
Likely one of us will have to spend some time alone
Maybe we’ll get 40 years together,
But one day I’ll be gone
Or one day you’ll be gone”
Gets me every time!
The hits and favourites keep coming – a tender ‘Strawberry woman’, and a lustrous ‘King of Oklahoma’, a wonderful version of Truckers’ favourite, ‘Goddamn Lonely Love’.
A special section is reserved for songs from the genre-defying album ‘Southeastern’, with ‘Stockholm’ and ‘Flying over water’ again getting fired-up versions.
2 hours of quite superb music delivered by a band that seems to relish delivering on stage.
It’s a measure of how good, that it is not until the next day that one realises he wasn’t able to fit in such gems as ‘Elephant’, ‘Children of Children’, ‘Running with your eyes closed’, ‘Codeine’, ‘Different days’, songs that other artists would give their right arm to have written. Maybe it’s just me being greedy?
A little bit of worldly advice- Never miss a chance to see this man live!