Brightest Young Things

The front entrance of the 9:30 Club this past Thursday night was as unassuming as ever: a few assorted concertgoers casually smoked cigarettes and paced with nervous anticipation, others waited in line for their tickets, while taxis perpetually looped the block and I, unknowingly, thought that everything was in its right place.  Little did I know that inside waited for me one of the most overwhelming experiences of my concert-going life: the massive fan base of Paolo Nutini.

I speak, with such cryptic shock, not of the actual performance that I attended on Thursday, but rather of the audience that was in attendance with me.  Never before have I been in a concert venue so thoroughly packed as the 9:30 Club was for Paolo.  I was not familiar with Paolo Nutini before Thursday, which only added to my shock that so many of my fellow residents could be such voracious fans without me ever having heard of him.  But, my ignorance has surprised me before, and no doubt will surprise me again.

The room was packed all the way back to the apparel booth, the balconies seemed to bend under the weight of an unprecedented number of bodies.  Looking around the room, I noticed that there was barely any room for friends to hold face-to-face conversations with each other, for lack of ample elbow-turning airspace.  The situation was such as to even make a sardine on Xanax feel claustrophobic.  Luckily, Paolo’s performance was compelling enough to make all these considerations melt to the sticky-sweaty floor.

His style is difficult to identify, although words like “schizophrenic” and “sporadic” quickly come to mind.  His style changed from song to song, as did the mood of the assembled masses.  To me it seemed like he had the house in the palm of his hand, and I was thoroughly surprised by his ability to get the concertgoers dancing: a rare occurrence in Washington D.C.  While I was not able to enthusiastically sing along to the lyrics or gyrate with any pre-conceived or intended rhythm, I will say that I enjoyed myself, even considering the weight of human flesh breathing down my neck.  The next time Paolo comes, he may think of playing in a bigger venue, possibly something outdoors with trees and stars?  Wherever he may play, I will be sure to be there.

Previously in Live DC:

• 2/13: LiveDC: George Clinton & The Parliament-Funkadelic @ 930 Club
• 2/13: LiveDC: Veronica Falls/ Brilliant Colors @ Black Cat
• 2/13: LIVE DC: Steve Aoki/ Datsik/ Alvin Risk @ Fillmore
• 2/13: LiveDC: The Darkness @ 930 Club
• 2/9: LiveDC: Theophilus London @ 930 Club
• 2/9: Best Weekend Bets
• 2/8: LiveDC: Kathleen Edwards @ 930 Club
• 2/8: LiveDC: Thurston Moore/ Kurt Vile @ Black Cat
• 2/8: LiveDC: Thurston Moore/ Kurt Vile @ Black Cat
• 2/7: LiveDC: Demetri Martin @ Warner Theatre