Last night I went to see Vienna Teng and Christina Courtin in concert. Too awesome! Vienna Teng is quite possibly my favourite artist at the moment, and I was positively gleeful last week to see her name on Union Hall’s website when I was browsing for info on the Jonathan Coulton concert. Union Hall is a small, intimate venue in Brooklyn, and its casual and slightly offbeat atmosphere would make it just the kind of hangout I’d frequent if I lived closer. I’m so happy to have discovered it!
Vienna was wonderful and charismatic in person, and to my delight, she played just about all of my favourite songs. I was sitting a little too close to the speakers for comfort and as a result had to listen with a finger on one ear, but I guess that’s what happens when you get out of work at 7, the doors open at 7:30, and it takes about 45 minutes to get there. I still had a fantastic time! She opened with “Blue Caravan,” a song that has particular significance to me as my roommate choreographed to it last spring. And at the request of me and another random guy in the back, she played my favourite song of hers, “The Tower,” performing it solo for the first time. Fabulous!
I was particularly impressed with Vienna’s percussionist, who was totally hardcore. It was so awesome to see how many bizarre instruments he played and added to the mix. Said instruments included a glockenspiel, a tambourine that he STOMPED on, an ordinary plastic box (which he also sat on), and a weird sci-fi looking thing I’ve never encountered before that resembled a metal sphere with spikes, played with a bow.
After Vienna Teng finished, I spontaneously decided to stay for the other act, even though it was getting late. I’m so glad I did! I’d never heard of Christina Courtin before, but I totally fell in love with her. She seemed so HAPPY when she sang! She performed barefoot, and she gave the impression that she was singing with her whole body, dancing around totally without pretense or self-consciousness. My favourite part was when she sang a cover of The Beatles’ “Honey Pie.” She was so freaking adorable! I am totally gay for her. XD Here she is on YouTube, singing one of the songs she also sang last night.
Three cheers for living in New York!
