Bic Runga
State Theatre, Sydney (17th March, 2006)
Birds (2005)
By Bic Runga (Columbia/SonyBMG)
I'd just like to point out that rather than wait for Bic to release 'Birds' in Australia (March 2006), I ordered my copy online in December. Disgraceful - New Zealand got their release in November.
How to describe 'Birds'? If her debut album 'Drive' was part angst part hope and her 2002 release 'Beautiful Collision' a collection of folk/pop songs about love, life and resignation then 'Birds' is just melancholy. The music and vocals are spare and often ethereal without the churning guitars that marked anthems like 'Swim' from 'Drive' nor the happy melody that follows 'Get Some Sleep' from 'Beaultiful Collision'. Imagine the more mellow, sentimental tunes like 'Bursting Through', 'Drive' and 'The Be All and End All' and 'She Left on a Monday'. Now imagine an entire album of those songs and you have 'Birds'.
The new album is downtempo with only two tracks, 'Winning Arrow' and 'Blue Blue Heart', with any discernible pace. Also evident is a hint of country with the lullaby-like 'No Crying No More' and a shade of Western storytelling with the epic tale contained within 'Ruby Nights'. Bic's lyrics rarely stray from simple, effective words that wend into poetry with the right music and timing. She never tries to be too clever with metaphors or esoteric concepts, which makes her one of the most intelligent songwriters (that I can think of) never to employ word play into lyrics and never having to resort to rhyming 'fire' with 'desire'.
I suspect it was a lot harder to get the right sound on this album compared to the other two, largely because it seems like there's so much involved to pare back the compositions. Kind of like the key to makeup being to look like you haven't any on. The greatest triumph is that it works - the balance perfectly foregrounds Bic's voice, the timbre and mood of each word while also ensuring that the music remains important.
This is something she translated well at the concert. The first half was packed with songs from 'Drive' and 'Beautiful Collision' and a couple of covers/B-sides and so therefore pleased the crowd and mostly rocked out. (She began with 'Precious Things' on the keyboard and ended with mega-hit 'Sway' on the guitar, just to give you an indication). She even wore fiery red.
The second half brought her out in a long golden gown with three backing singers and Neil Finn on piano (who Bic has outsold in their native NZ). Surprisingly, this ensemble totalled twice as many musicians than the first half for songs that were half as loud. Performed with quiet dignity and a feminine touch, the second half was all 'Birds', every single track. Of particular note was 'Ruby Nights', played with necessary restraint and 'That's Alright', which "spoke to me".
Predictably she returned for an encore with Neil Finn, which consisted of 'The Be All and End All' and 'Something Good' then solo for 'Drive', which I thought was a good move. The audience loved her.
The venue was fittingly large and lush without losing intimacy but I do hanker for The Basement days, which suits her tranquil disposition. While she doesn't lack charisma, she doesn't tend to project it, radiate it, like other music personalities. That's partly why we love her; she exudes a certain kind of modesty about her well-received work but she'll never play to a stadium. The State Theatre was almost too much for her but she managed in the end.
gig: ***1/2 - an enjoyable night but nothing to rave about
album: **** - incredibly deceptive in its complexity and touch
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