Jenny Lewis at Barrymore Theatre
Jessica Horn
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Just keep your Power Glove off of her," a jealous Fred Savage warns in the 1989 nerd-classic The Wizard when a sleazy video-gamer kid attempts to woo Jenny Lewis (who did time as a child actor). Decider came close to sharing Savage’s protective instincts when a portly sixtysomething with a sketchy moustache and a red bandana kept creepily howling “Hell yeah, maw-maw!” during some of Lewis’ most delicate passages on Thursday at the Barrymore Theatre. While anybody could have easily predicted that the fetching singer would be spending the night shyly ducking catcalls from chubby old men, the real story is in the way her backing band pumped new life into Lewis’ already solid back catalog.
After the show kicked off with a quick set of reverb-soaked pop tunes by Venice, Calif.’s Farmer Dave, a.k.a. Dave Scher of Beachwood Sparks fame (who would rejoin his rhythm section later as part of Lewis’ backing band), The Sadies (who've played with Neko Case and John Doe) rattled the stage with a chimerical set of '60s revivalism that held up with incredible musicianship and brainy songwriting.
From the opening surf-rock of “Lay Down Your Arms,” the melodic speed-picking of guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Travis Good shot into the jangling chords of vocalist-guitarist Dallas Good, as stand-up bassist Sean Dean walked all over the galloping drumlines of Mike Belitsky. The Sadies’ performance stretched across its six-album discography, the latest of which is 2007’s New Seasons. Throughout the set, Travis switched between violin, piano, and guitar. Whether he was complementing the country stomp of “Anna Leigh” with finger-picked arpeggios or making dizzying runs through the gospel-tinged “Higher Power,” he strutted across the line between showmanship and solid musicianship. After The Sadies wrapped up with “Tiger Tiger,” Lewis hit the stage with just her acoustic guitar.
Lewis hushed the crowd quickly with an acoustic rendition of Rilo Kiley’s “Silver Lining,” the lyrics of which seemed to describe her move from a supporting role in her old band to her current position: “I was your silver lining / but now I’m gold.” Lewis’ backing band, which included her boyfriend Johnathan Rice on guitar, quickly stormed the stage and ripped into shuffling rocker “See Fernando.” With haste, Lewis and company powered through the playfully self-conscious “The Charging Sky” and the romantically futile “You Are What You Love,” during which Scher plucked at an Autoharp. Lewis’ set drew mostly from 2006’s Rabbit Fur Coat and 2008’s Acid Tongue, also pulling out a couple of vibrant new tunes.
Lewis and Rice in a duet moment.Jessica Horn
In addition to strumming, Rice proved an able duet partner, filling the parts Elvis Costello sings on the album version of “Carpetbaggers,” and offering some murderous baritone storytelling in “Jack Killed Mom.” The rest of the backing band certainly didn’t leave too many gaps: Scher filled empty spaces with swelling pedal-steel guitar, and a multi-instrumentalist introduced as Danielle shifted between percussion, guitar, and harmonica, and even switched spots with the band's excellent drummer for a song. The most memorable moment of the show came when Lewis miffed the lyrics to “Tryin’ So Hard To Love You," then embarrassedly called upon the audience to help her remember the lyrics. She started again from the top, sending her heart-wrenching voice flying through the room. After closing her set with the eight-minute-plus epic “The Next Messiah,” Lewis came back out for an encore, playing through a stripped down rendition of “Acid Tongue,” another new song, and set-closer “Sing A Song For Them.” That one guy's cries of "Hell yeah, maw maw!" persisted, yet Lewis sailed gracefully above it all.
