Brightest Young Things

all words and photos: Joel Mittleman

Back in December, Josh Ritter and his band played the 9:30 club.  It was good.  I gratefully sang along to the standards.  I laughed at his frequent jokes.  I even forgave him when he forgot the words to his songs, multiple times.  Like everyone else in the sold out crowd, I was a big fan:  Josh would really have to work to disappoint me.   And he didn’t.

But, December’s show wasn’t great.  Josh seemed excited but not focused, as though he mostly just wanted to show his fans that he hadn’t forgotten about them.  Still, the night had one true bright spot: three songs from his then-untitled new album, which he assured would be out “as soon as possible.”   They were excellent.  Hearing them was like a promise: the Josh Ritter we all loved would be back soon, and potentially better than before.

Saturday night, that promise was fulfilled.  On the second night of his tour and just four days after the release of his near perfect new album, So Runs the World Away, Josh was on a mission.  Gone were the fumbled lyrics and meandering banter of December’s show.  Instead, Josh and the band ripped through almost two full hours of music, keeping the stage lights on until 12:10.   He barely spoke between songs, jumping up and down as his band turned the corner into another track.  The jumping was warranted; the band was flawless.  They played like a group of musicians reemerging from intense months of writing and recording in a farmhouse in rural Maine.

Josh occupies a weird space in contemporary music, and Saturday showcased this. He hasn’t yet commanded the mass following of a John Mayer or even a Ray Lamontagne.  I get that.  His songs ask a lot of their listeners (“If this was the cold war, we could keep each other warm” doesn’t have the NutraSweet appeal of “Your body is a wonderland, I’ll use my hands” ).  But he also hasn’t made his way into the indie mainstream, so to speak, and I’m not sure why.  For fans of Bright Eyes, Ryan Adams, the Swell Season, Bon Iver, Elliot Smith, Damien Rice, Iron & Wine, A.A. Bondy—and the list goes on—the step to Josh’s work should be a very natural one.  But it hasn’t happened.

Instead, Josh continues to garner the adoration of outlets like Paste and NPR, while being completely neglected by mainstays like Rolling Stone and Pitchfork.   He draws comparisons to the greats—Springsteen, Dylan, Simon—without drawing their album sales or stadium shows.  He enjoys a kind of unrealized mass appeal, evidenced by the diverse crowd packing 9:30 Saturday night.  There were frat boys spilling beer on their Springsteen shirts, hipsters with hands tucked in skinny jeans, adolescent girls screaming “I love you, Josh!” and older couples obviously not used to being out so late.

But, if Josh’s climb to icon status is currently stalled at midsized venues like 9:30, he certainly doesn’t seem to mind. He played Saturday’s show with an unshakable grin, taking breaks only to thank his fans, friends and band.  This is an artist who still signs all the pre-ordered copies of his album with an exclamation point.  His dogged earnestness and humility are almost as engaging as the music itself.

Opening the show Saturday was the Kentucky-born, Brooklyn-based songwriter Dawn Landes. She was a delight.  With her recently released Sweetheart Rodeo, the classic Americana of her first two albums has given way to a more unique, twang-y sound that she seemed thrilled to take for a spin.  Her set was a whimsical outpouring of musicianship: foot bell duets, slide whistles, wind chimes, and a harmonica-playing drummer all played a part.  Incidentally, Landes also happens to be celebrating her one year wedding anniversary with Mr. Ritter.  I know everyone loves Beyonce and Jay-Z, but I’m pretty sure Dawn and Josh make just about the cutest music couple out there.

As a friend pointed out, there was only song noticeably missing from Josh’s lengthy set: the crowd favorite “Kathleen.” A highlight of every Josh Ritter concert I’ve seen, the rush of that first G-Major strum and the communal chorus of “All the other girls here are stars, you are the Northern Lights” was denied to us Saturday.  I barely noticed.  In its place were new favorites, the words to which many of us already knew.  As Josh continues to develop as an artist, each show’s set list will grow ever more inadequate.  Given Saturday’s performance, I can’t wait.

Previously in Live DC:

• 5/22: LiveDC: Spirit Animal @ Red Palace
• 5/22: LiveDC: Astra Via @ Black Cat
• 5/22: LiveDC: Father John Misty @ Rock & Roll Hotel
• 5/22: LiveDC: Drive-By Truckers and Lucinda Williams @ Merriweather
• 5/22: Photos: Summer Camp takes the "Ladies of Town" Drag Show
• 5/22: LiveDC: Penguin Prison & Class Actress @ RNR Hotel
• 5/21: LiveDC: James Morrison @ 930 Club
• 5/21: Photos: Que Sera L'Anniversaire @ Napoleon
• 5/21: LiveDC: La Sera/ Beach Week @ Red Palace
• 5/21: LiveDC: The Black Keys & Arctic Monkeys @ Merriweather Post Pavilion