Hoot Owl Callin’
“Fight the greed and the
federals. Fight the need and the toxic spills. Drink from that wishing well,
but may it never quench your thirst…”
Tacoma, WA was the second stop on
the Summer 2018 Tour, which my friend,
Amy and I dubbed the I Didn’t Know A Damn
Thing Tour after the new Amy Ray
solo song… even though she didn’t play it at all. I had a day off in between
the Kirkland show and the Tacoma show, so Jonath made me some coffee after
Kirkland and I made the drive home to sleep in my own bed, with my cat, Olive,
and have the entire next day to prep for the 3-in-a-row shows!
My friend, Marin, was gracious
enough to let me borrow her car for the week, and on Friday, I was heading
Northbound again. I arrived to town a few hours before show time to check into
my lakeside accommodations in Federal Way, WA and was able to kill a bit of
time before I found the Steel Creek Whiskey American Whiskey Co. I grabbed a
spot outside on the patio and waited for my IG peeps, Amy, Lynn and Lynn’s
friend to “kick up their heals and join
in.” Our waitress was a hoot and we ended up skipping Lucy Roche’s set to
have more time laughing in the sun.
The Rialto Theater is gorgeous with
a capacity of just 450 (50 more seats than Kirkland). Though unlike Kirkland’s
Performance Center, the inside of the Rialto is very tall and hard, with a
balcony, which caused a slight echo. It made for a diverse sound amidst an
extended tour, but the sound could not compare to Kirkland’s cushy walls and no
balcony, encapsulating a real studio feel.
Here
is my run down of the show:
Third row 2 shows in a row, this
time - aisle seats! Also, we immediately saw violins, which meant… Lyris is
back!
1. Fill It Up Again - The opening song two nights in a row!
It’s a good vocal warm up… for all of us! “Hole
in, my sky…” The energy in the venue was bubbling, but the front two rows
were all members of the venue who did not
understand the fan’s singing, clapping, and squealing.
2. Become You - With the harmonica! I love when they get
lost in their own songs. Emily threw in an extra “it took a…” on accident.
Barely noticeable since she caught herself but very cute.
3. Hammer and Nail – Ya
know what?! Classic! Hammer and Nail
is another great song to get the crowd brewing. Amy Ray
was
wearing the black button up with red arrows on the shoulders with what I refer
to as, her Fern Gully Chic pants (the
new ones with the tropical flair covered with palm leaves that get confused for
birds). After the song ended, someone yelled out “Where did you get those
pants?!” Though, there was a lot of yelling and laughing and when Amy didn’t
hear her, she yelled out again, “No seriously, where did you get those pants?!”
4. Spread The Pain Around - Amy never answered the pants question
(maybe ignored?), but instead said, “We’re gonna play a really sad song now. It
doesn’t feel right, but we’re all set up for it!” Already, they knew the place
was hoppin’! Amy introduced Lucy Roche again and confessed how she had Lucy’s voice
in mind when she wrote Spread The Pain
Around. Amy and Emily both agreed Lucy was their muse and inspiration,
which made Lucy feel extra awkward.
My favorite Spread The Pain Around introduction was Jordan Brooke Hamlin on the
No Songs Left Behind 2016 Tour
(Portland, OR at [Little] Revolution Hall). Amy egged her on, as if they had
been joking about it earlier and Jordan comes out with… “Is there a doctor is
the house?! Cause we’re gonna Spread The
Pain Around!”
5. Get Out The Map – Not quite the same impact on this crowd
as the Kirkland peeps, but this is always a staple on tour. At this point, I’ll
introduce the Tacoma Screamer. She was in the row behind me, maybe 5 seats to
my right and was very enthusiastic. I
love the excitement between songs and maybe a quick shout during a guitar solo,
but this was blood curdling and though sometimes appropriately timed, mostly just
consistent and primarily obnoxious.
6. Let Me Go Easy - This was written as Reunion on the set list. In between songs, after the Tacoma
Screamer, my friend, Amy, yelled out “Let
Me Go Easy!” from our seats. Amy Ray and Emily were already holding their Reunion guitars but stopped in their
tracks. They whispered to each other for a bit, told Lucy to stay on stage as
she tried to sneak away. They actually played the request right there on the spot! Lyris filled in on the violin and our
night was made.
Amy intro: “This is an obscure little number that
I’m not sure how anybody knows it! Nah, it was on something.” (Rarities in 2005) Amy spoke about
visiting her friend Neelok, before she passed of cancer, and recalled a
conversation they had while Neelok hid in the bathroom from the hospice staff,
most likely smoking. “We were talking and I lifted a bunch of quotes from her
to write this song.”
7. Mystery - Now, as if Let Me Go Easy wasn’t perfect enough, they followed it up with
Emily’s Mystery. 10 gold stars for
this show already. Gorgeous.
8. Go – Slo-Go
(as we have been referring to the acoustic version since the Symphony
arrangement of the song) was starting to turn into another staple on this tour
with renewed energy. Amy has always dedicated Go to the youth in the World who can make a change, but it’s most
appropriate now more than ever. Emily tore it up again on electric, but it was
Lyris who nailed her violin solo! The song was already starting to evolve on
this tour.
9. Wood Song - Since Lyris was already on fire, she launched
into to the Wood Song intro. I’ve
seen them do this with Lyris probably close to 20 times by now and every time,
Lyris freestyles a completely different intro. Sometimes upbeat, sometimes sorrowful,
sometimes blue grassy, or rock, or folk but tonight was all out dramatic and
sucked me into another world. I love that her intro to the Wood Song almost tends to set the tone for night.
10. Share The Moon – I was thrilled to see this moved up in
the set list, opening up a vital slot in the Encore! After the Kirkland, WA
show, I sent a note back stage to Amy Ray requesting her 20-year-old song, Point Hope. Now, with Share The Moon in the middle of the set,
I was hopeful to hear Point Hope in
the Encore. (Spoiler Alert: She never played Point Hope at any show, but I digress). More people in the crowd
joined us for the hand claps. The members though, now even more confused about
the audience participation, surely hated it. So, we clapped louder and prouder.
I mean, come on, there are only 4 claps in the whole song! Amy loved it and
smiled over to us!
“Hey la la…” ::clap::
“I’m
gonna love ya ‘til it hurts, I don’t mind if I do… Hey la la…” ::clap::
“I’m
gonna love ya ‘til it works, I’ve got no mind to lose…”
11. Able To Sing - Emily confidently remembered the song
was from Beauty Queen Sister as
opposed to two nights before and spoke more about Lucy’s harmonies. She told
the story about the birds following from the sky again. How some thought it was
the fireworks that caused the deaths, how some thought it was a vision of what’s
to come. But Emily thinks of goodness and open hearts and truth in power. She
spoke about those currently in power and how we, the birds, need to sing for
change.
12. Ozilline – I’ll never tire of this song, as it’s always
been one of my all-time favorites. For me, it was the first song I learned to
play on the Mandolin. But for Amy Ray, Ozilline
has been the name of her grandmother, her dog, and now her daughter, Ozie.
13. Train Inside - Solo Emily from Murmuration Nation! Her
band shows back in November were truly awesome, and I can only hope for more! Train Inside has been a staple in IG
shows for over a year now, though I do feel like Sad One, Fly, or Slow Down Day Friend (with Lucy on backing vocals)
would also all make fantastic options to rotate through the acoustic “Emily
Solo” segment of the set list!
Or… Philosophy of Loss, anyone? Hell, while I’m at it... Fare Thee Well? History of Us?!
Recently, after the deaths of Kate
Spade and Anthony Bourdain, the lyrics have brought a new meaning to mind,
bringing up many memories of Robin Williams as well as so, so many others, near
and far.
“I feel like a train inside,
can’t you hear that lonesome sound?”
14. Hammond Song – Emily gives this song an intro and
explains how they love The Roches, and have known Lucy since she was a little
girl. They decided to learn this song a couple years ago, though since then,
Maggie Roche (who wrote it) has passed away. Emily said Maggie is one of the
greatest American writers and they now play the song in her honor.
15. Virginia Wolf - This was another request from earlier in
the night, but it was actually already on the set list. Always been a pretty
song, especially with Lyris, though as time goes on, Emily’s voice contains
more and more vibrato giving the song an updated feel.
16. Holler - A new Amy solo song! And my first time
seeing it live! The electric Gibson sounded awesome! Her new album is called
Holler, but I don’t think she mentioned that. Emily did ask, “Did you tell them
it comes out on Sept 28th? I can’t wait to hear it!” Amy looked at her and said,
“I’ll send it to you soon.” which made us all giggle. Then they mentioned that
the new, live Symphony Album drops “in a couple weeks,” but quickly realized “it
comes out in just 7 days!”
17. Let It Be Me - Another political song, with big cheers
after “Well the world seems spent, and
our president, has no idea who the masses are…”!
Someone yelled out “GHOST!” after Let It Be Me and Amy actually had a look on her face as if to say -
we could do that - but Emily looked
at her, sternly shook her head and said, “No.”
Amy (and us) laughed about the exchange and Emily said sincerely into the mic
to the requester, “I hope that doesn’t upset you.” And Amy chirped, “But here’s
one from the same record!”
18. ChickenRoot - Loud and awesome! The sound, all of a
sudden, was spot on for this one! I
think all the bass-y dropped D’s on the guitars enriched the tone that reverberated
against the theater walls. I’ll never get sick of Bitterroot River. I remember when they brought it back without Chickenman for the One Lost Day Summer 2015 Band Tour with former
Shadowboxer boys, Ben on bass, and Jaron on drums. I saw it at all 3 Texas [Was
Clean] shows and it was a hoot!
Bitterroot
River was also the very first song at my very first Indigo Girls concert in
2002 on the Become You Summer Tour.
19. Galileo – Fun as always, though with the members
in the first two rows, there was no stage rushing yet. They didn’t even stand
up! Most of our third row was standing, though I’m tall, so I perched on the
arm of the seat and bounced around.
Encore!
20. Shame on You – After Galileo ended, the audience cheered for more, and my friends and I
timed our stage rush perfectly! Dead center, right at the stage, the area
behind us instantly filled up. The ‘Girls started playing Shame On You, the
Tacoma Screamer was screaming, the non-members in the audience were losing
their shit, singing at the top of the lungs and Amy Ray didn’t even sing the first verse and chorus, allowing the crowd to
take the lead.
It wasn’t Point Hope, but it was certainly an amazing moment! The only other
time I’ve witnessed the fans take the lead like that on Shame On You was at the hot & steamy Hampton Beach Casino
Ballroom in New Hampshire where you can smell the energy in the air, but can’t
breathe cause it’s so thick!
21. Closer To Fine – A sing-a-long for the ages! And I got my
“Hey Colin” point-and-acknowledgement
from Amy at the tail end of the show.
“I’m high, I’m on high!”
That night, back at my
accommodations, I toasted half of bagel and smeared it with cream cheese while
I outlined this blog. The next morning, I met my friends, Nich & Steve for
[Starbucks] coffee in Federal Way before heading home to Portland, Or for the
next show that night. It was fan-tastic
and so heartwarming to be able to
meet with my newer Seattle friends (Lynn the night before, and Nich & Steve
that morning) whom I’ve met in recent years at the West Coast shows, to sit together
and really talk in a quieter establishment
where we could actually hear each other’s stories.
I had met Nich two years prior in
Kirkland, WA during the February No Song
Left Behind Tour (dubbed by friend-Amy and I, the Keg of Wine 2015 Tour). Amy and I had missed the ticket sales, but
were already in Seattle, walking home after the Showbox show when Nich messaged
us via Facebook to offer 2 tickets! Since it was about midnight, we immediately
thought it was a scam, and treaded lightly until we met the next night in
Kirkland. His sister had come down with a cold and wasn’t able to attend, but we
also didn’t want to scare him off, so we were very nonchalant about our fandom
that night.
Nich: “So how many times have you seen the
Indigo Girls?”
Us: “Oh, we’ve seen them a few times!” Hah….
A few times that week!
The cat’s out of the bag at this
point, and Nich still adores us. His sister was top notch, and they were both
in attendance in Tacoma.
These
are my people, y’all.
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