the submersible dirigible

For corporate cogs like myself, the biweekly paycheck day is a joyous occasion. Every other thursday in the mailbox, waiting patiently, is that freshly printed statement of self-worth, precise to two decimal points. Turns out, I’m not worth much (and only up about 3% from last year). More troubling than the ultimate value, though, is the fact that my single bi-weekly check isn’t even enough to cover that months rent, which ends up devouring around 60% of my income. It’s usually difficult to warrant such waste. Well, when the Wordless Music Series shows are in full swing, the decision seems more than justified. I’m situated literally 20 minutes walk from the best New York has to offer.

My first Wordless show featured Eluvium, who I’d been dying to see for ages, supporting Amiina. The venues are mostly churches, perfectly warm, intimate spaces for ambient acoustics. I had also bought tickets to see The Books, but had to miss the show for work (I’ve bought tickets for three separate Books shows, and missed them all). Most recently, I was able to see Colleen supporting Beirut. I’d seen Colleen before, supporting partner Leaf label musician A Hack and a Hacksaw. I’m guessing Colleen got paired with Beirut for their tour through Hack and a Hacksaw, since the two bands worked closely together on the eastern-european, gypsy inspired and critically adored ‘Gulag Orkestar‘, a sound Hacksaw has been developing for years, over several albums. Even under the worst concert conditions, at a tiny show during the summer of 2005, in a stuffed, unventilated Philadelphia art studio, I’d completely fallen for Colleen’s looping, glitchty, music box & minimalist cello that night. Well, her Wordless performance was similarly stunning. Fortunately this time I’m able to relive the experience, and share it with other like minded folks since WYNC recently decided to partner up with Wordless to archive this season’s shows, and offer the recording for free online. They’ve really come at a perfect time, with the absolute best performances yet to come from Múm, Hauschka, and Max Richter in his first ever US concert appearance. WYNC’s recording of the Colleen show is embedded below. The rest can be found on WNYC’s page dedicated to Wordless.

Recommended highlights: Colleen @ 23:15 (from Golden Morning Breaks), Katya Mihailova & Colin Jacobsen @ 50:26 (performing Arvo Part’s Fratres)

(image: Colleen in Paris, promotional photo from colleenplays.org)