The Remis Auditorium in the heart of the MFA isn’t the expected venue for two low-flying acts on their sophomore albums, but a combination of pixie dust and local buzz brought NH-bred Nat Baldwin and Somerville natives Gem Club into the freakishly perfect acoustic paradise, and a whole new kind of audience. It’s not every day you find a sold out crowd composed half of overzealous fans (see: glasses, overly complicated cameras, useless degrees), half curious older members of the Museum (see: blazers, disposable income, disgusted by former group) seeing what the fuss was all about. The split was hard to ignore, but as the lights dimmed and Dirty Projectors bassist Nat Baldwin took the stage with his double bass, all was forgiven at the first note.
We got a chance to catch up with Baldwin several weeks before the show to talk about his spring release (title yet to be announced), in which he admitted the MFA would be the “perfect setting” for his solo material. Friday night, jazz-trained Baldwin held the bass like a girlfriend as focused on newer material like “Weight” and Arthur Russell cover “A Little Lost” from his 2013 People Changes EP. It’s no surprise to learn that Baldwin recorded these soaring tracks first in the deep woods of Maine—the haunting bassline beside lyrics like “Low ghost/Circle in/This doubt” aren’t city-grown commodities, and it’s what separates his work from his time with the Projectors, not to mention past work with Vampire Weekend and Grizzly Bear. As he predicted, the MFA venue served Baldwin in all the right ways, allowing the robust bass sound to be felt in a place built for symphonic groups instead of the subtleties disappearing into the crevices of an dirty club.
New songs were Baldwin’s triumph of the night, and long-time fans and first-timers alike sat with mouths agape to “Knockout” and “Lake Erie”, pieces he had debuted on a late fall tour of the upper east coast. After closing the show on sweeping six-minute epic “In the Hollow”, Baldwin, ever the gentleman in flannel, quietly thanked Gem Club for having him, a gesture they’d gladly return before the end of the night. If the preview of his new work is any indication, Baldwin’s 2014 release will strip his the long-standing love affair between man and bass down even more than his 2008 effort Most Valuable Player, so consider your breath officially held.
Following a performance from artist Michael Pope, the members of Gem Club entered the stage completely in black. Lead singer Christopher Barnes, sporting shorter hair and a sleeker look, more black skinny jeans and a Bob Ross-style turtleneck, flanked by cellist and founding member Krysten Drymala and Ieva Berberian in dakr dresses complete with Vampira-style lace sleeves. Dramatic? Well, when you’re playing at an art museum in front of a forty-foot image of a dripping rose, you’ve got to dress the part.
Visual artist Brianna Olson’s visual work was projected behind the performance with grace alongside Gem Club’s minimal pop , no surprise after years of collaboration between the two—she’s directed the music videos for GC’s “Twins” and “Animals”. GC used their time at the MFA for a would-be release show for In Roses, released off of Seattle label Hardly Art mere days before the show kicks off a small tour. The group’s three members were comfortably stationed in front of the dreamy projections that married themselves to each song, Drymala and Berberian following Barnes’ lead through the album in its entirety.
To offset the non-traditional concert environment, Barnes regaled the audience with anecdotes about the production of In Roses between tracks, asking halfway through, “Is this interesting to everybody?” The audience hooted the affirmative at the stage in one of the only traditionally concert-y moments of the evening, and Barnes laughed before saying , “All right, then we’re gonna be here all night.” Cool by us. Barnes’ always impressive vocals, wrought with pain and harmonized as perfectly as we’ve come to expect, soared through standout tracks “Idea for Strings,” “Michael,” “Braid,” and the gorgeous conclusion “Polly,” featuring the strongest showing from both Gem Club and Olson’s visual work.
In Roses is a slight departure from GC’s 2011 release Breakers, a point Barnes hit home when introducing “Michael”—its lyrics are driven by relationships and longing, standing in stark contrast to their introspective debut. Some songs are about the lyrics, some songs are about the strings, some songs are about the harmony, but it’s all the music to fall into a trance that Gem Club’s become known for. Hats off to Gem Club and Nat Baldwin both– they had the home field advantage, but sure as hell didn’t need it.