I just wanted to make sure you all knew Kate will be playing this one show at the end of the Ben Folds dates.

Spread the word.

Gamage.

the Hotel Cafe is in Los Angeles of course.

Thanks, Gamage...are in in L.A.? Were you at the Viper Room show?

aghh hotel cafe. i was there in july.. didnt quite make it in though haha maybe next time!

Yay! What an amazing night. The show was even more electric than the one I'd gone to a few weeks ago at the Viper Room. And today, Keir and Kate are winging their way back to you lot.

The night began with a few drinks and conversation across the street at the Velvet Margarita, a lushly (some would say tackily) decorated bar with a Day-of-the-Dead theme (silver sombreros on the ceiling, velvet paintings of famous Mexicans portrayed as skeletons on the wall, motorized marionettes in insets at the bar). Kate's Aussie label, Sony BMG, was hosting them for an hour or so before the performance, and my other half's connections brought us into immediate contact with Keir and Kate who were, of course, just lovely.

Trying not to appear as a gushing fan (but failing miserably), I asked them how "Last Day On Earth" had been used on "Neighbours" and Kate replied that it had been used as a promo to tout the killing off of a major character on the show (but was not actually used on the show). Then she mentioned it had also been used in conjunction with a show featuring Danni Minogue and the conversation went from there to Kylie and to Kate's first cassingle (I was actually the one to bring up that Kate's first music purchase was a Kylie CD, and she corrected me: "cassingle.") Ah, the elusive Kylie cassingle. She mentioned the Aussie tour and that they were flying to Byron Bay tomorrow (which is today), and asked if we'd been to Australia (which we have just been in September).

When some other guests arrived we moved aside (to be honest, I'm not usually so good at conversations with people I admire/listen to, so I was more than happy with the attention we'd received and to move along). A couple of margaritas later (not really made of Velvet, as the bar's name would have you believe) and some nice conversation with the Sony BMG peeps ("The One Thing I Know" was a fave track of this particular rep), and we were ready to move across the street.

But first, a quick pic with Kate and Keir in the Velvet Margarita. Two pics actually, as the flash didn't go off. To be posted later.

Across the street, the opener was Kat Parsons, a powerhouse American vocalist whose own brother John provided the accompanying guitar. She was amazing. And pretty damn funny as well, going on a tangent in the middle of a sexy love song to ask the audience if it were weird to be singing such a song with her brother. We bought a CD, but I've not listened to it yet. As she closed, she said that everyone should stay put for Kate who has that "facebook song that is so funny, it's called 'Are You Fucking Kidding Me?' so please stay tuned for her..." (which was nice, as this wasn't really a KMH show per se, but more an industry showcase with three different female acts).

After a brief intermission, Kate and Keir appeared on stage to fiddle with various things and left the stage for a moment. While I took the opportunity to get the Kat Parsons CD, they must've jumped back onstage and launched into "Our Song," of which I missed half (luckily the boyfriend snapped it up on his iphone).

Then she introduced herself and...had to keep speaking while Keir re-tuned his guitar for "Politics In Space." With just the two of them onstage, it became a more intimate song, of course, and they skipped the breakdown (the spoken "It's alright" section) at the end of the song. This was the audience's first taste of Kate's operatic range and it drew some amazed guffaws.

Then came "Caught in the Crowd" with the same spoken intro about poor Jenny that she'd given at the Viper Room. I don't think the audience was suitably warmed up for Kate's dark sense of humor, because when she said "how can I make Jenny's life just a little...more...sh*t," only a few people laughed...I think humor is such an intangible thing...sometimes the unexpected draws a big laugh and other times it's just so unexpected that it draws a bit of a blank. Kate appears so sublimely sweet, I think everyone wanted that last word to be "sunshiney."

The audience definitely got into the dark humor groove for "Dreams/I Love You," though, which was next on the list. The performance drew huge laughs and Kate's inhaled/exhaled vocal on "are you laughing at meeeeeheeeheeeeeeheeee" and the growled "I Loooove yoooou" were the biggest ones.

I got a little deja vu from earlier in the evening when she said that her next song had gotten a boost from an Australian soap opera called "Neighbors" and was used in the promos to kill off a character, and how the single had done well so she was quite glad she (the character) had died. More big laughs. "The Last Day On Earth" was simply played -- mostly piano and vocals with a few chords from Keir.

"Toxic" was next and Kate introduced it as a tribute "to someone that's very close to our hearts" and added "Britney, this is for you." The audience howled at the operatic vocals and really screamed when Kate did the aria toward the end.

Changing tone a bit, "Day After Christmas" was as poignant as I've heard it. I am still amazed by this song...so beautifully written by Keir.

She began "Are your F*cking Kidding" me while standing at the mic...and even got a whole line out before realizing she should also be playing the keyboards. Which made me chuckle. But they're so natural and casual as they move about the stage, it was hardly a blip in the show. And I don't know if the audience had heard this song before...it's really her only claim to fame here as of yet, but it was still just an internet sensation, so who knows? The crowd certainly laughed in all the right places and hooted and hollered during the "poking me" part. It was a big hit (we Americans do a love a bit of a wink and a nod to the tale of revenge and the double entendre, and well, when you combine the two, kaboom).

The last song of the evening was their amazing rendition of "Words" with Keir's guitar solo, which starts off quietly, almost comically quiet and then rises to an audience-thrilling crescendo. At this point, the audience was waiting on every breath from them, so even Kate's pronounced inhale drew some laughter. I think they really charmed this mostly-music-industry crowd and made them want more...as a matter of fact, the word "more" was yelled by me, yes, but also a few others as Keir and Kate exited the stage. To no avail. "Words" was to remain the last song.

I went back to buy a CD for my sister (only "Curiouser" was on the shelf). Sadly, I think Keir was breaking down the stage and did not appear before we left. Kate recognized me from earlier and offered to give the CD to me (as if I would allow that!) and signed it to Thayer (my sister) and mentioned that there were some vocal aids called Thaya(?) that were actually really disgusting and not recommended. She was funny and gracious and also signed the setlist I'd (again) swiped from the stage. (The set list mentioned "Psycho Killer" instead of "Toxic," but I think "Toxic" was the wiser choice.)


A great night! Another novel from me! And more videos, if I can ever get them to post (they are really great vids, too...please be patient).

Robb

I am a fan of your rather detailed descriptions!
Looking forward to the vids

Thanks for the great review

Hey Robb,
Thanks a bunch for the detailed description of the night and the show.
Greenly
Ian

^ No prob!

Ian, is she touring in January somewhere you might get to see her?

Here's one video (so far). I recorded them in HD, so I think I have to make them all MP4s in order for youtube to take them. Which will take time. But they still look pretty good. This one's "TOXIC":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6wIxSE3GVI

Edit for adds:

RUFKM?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZDvcbfifbU

Day After Christmas:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIcor76ILzA