[Sarah and I went to see Willy Mason last night and my mum, eager to see my journalism career get off the ground, told me to do a write-up of the show and send it to some music magazines. Here's what I came up with.]
Willy Mason at The Point, Cardiff, 7/5/07
The Point, a former church that has been converted into a fully-functioning concert venue, makes a lovely backdrop for a gig. Particularly the stained glass windows. Still, it never hurts to go the extra mile, and so Willy Mason and his band are also treating us to a showing of The Dark Crystal, Jim Henson's seminal 1982 meditation on good and evil.
Willy Mason at The Gate, Cardiff, 6/9/11
Willy Mason has broken his thumb-pick. Holding its remains aloft, he asks the audience if, by any chance, somebody could lend him one.
It's not the first time that Mason has crossed the artist/audience divide. Previous tours have seen him performing in fans' living rooms and crashing on their sofas for the night. Sadly, nobody present has a spare pick, and so this golden opportunity to be part of the show passes and Mason simply has to tape his broken one back together.
This show comes a couple of months after the release of If The Ocean Gets Rough, the second Willy Mason album proper and follow-up to 2005's critically acclaimed Where The Humans Eat. Since that album his sound has expanded considerably, and tonight his country-folky musings are fleshed out by a full, electric, band, as well as his friend Nina Violet on viola.
There's no band tonight, just Willy and his electric guitar. It's been four quiet years or so since If The Ocean Gets Rough, Mason's last release, and he seems to have brought along a few new songs to try out. However, he forgoes the usual 'new stuff' patter - "this is a new one, it's going to be on my next record, hope you like it" - instead allowing the unfamiliar material to sit, unburdened, alongside the older cuts. You hardly notice the join.
The setlist is pretty evenly divided between his two albums - recent singles 'We Can Be Strong' and 'Save Myself' mingle nicely with songs like 'Where The Humans Eat', although admittedly the latter elicits a louder cheer from the crowd (as well as a gleeful cry of "MEEEEE!!" during the last verse). There are a few chestnuts, too; non-album track 'Mosquitoes' features only Mason and his acoustic guitar, and, for me, is one of the highlights.
The Gate used to be a Presbyterian church, but has since been turned into a rather charming arts centre. Until recently it was mostly used for plays and dance classes, but lately it's been gathering steam as a music venue and it could even fill the hole that The Point left in Cardiff's live scene when it was forced to close a few years ago. Tonight's audience is seated (some of them in pews, presumably left over from the venue's previous function), and one gets the feeling that this is far more of a 'concert' than a 'gig'. People are drinking red wine instead of lager. Enthusiastic bursts of applause follow each song, but otherwise we all just watch in slightly awed silence. Listen carefully, though, and you might just be able to hear the gentle tap of our approving feet.
The film projection certainly lends an air of psychedelia to what should have been a fairly straightforward folk-rock gig. Just like thousands of internet people have found a certain synchronicity between Dark Side of the Moon and The Wizard of Oz, there are moments tonight when Mason's lyrics could almost have been commissioned to soundtrack The Dark Crystal. Perhaps it's my imagination, but the likes of 'Simple Town' and 'When The Leaves Have Fallen' seem to go quite nicely with the lush fantasy landscapes and the innocence of the central characters. And when Mason's laptop runs out of battery in the middle of 'Riptide', thus cutting our viewing pleasure tragically short? Well, that's the end of the gig; he apologises, waves goodbye and heads offstage.
And then something wonderful happens: during the chorus of 'Riptide', a wistful song full of nostalgic longing for a simpler time...Mason burps. Hilarity ensues. He's very embarrassed, and apologises profusely, but if anything it's only endeared him to us all the more. The song continues, and while Mason has been completely thrown off his stride, he is helped to the conclusion by the audience, who - to a man - start clapping along to encourage him. It's rather heartwarming, actually.
Of course he comes back. Some rather drunk-sounding people in the audience have been belting out the chorus of 'So Long' in the hopes of having it belted back at them by the man himself, but instead he gives us a rendition of 'Oxygen', his breakthrough single. It's quiet but powerful, especially with everyone singing along, and it's a fitting end to tonight's proceedings.
When the music magazines first started talking about Willy Mason, he joined an ever-increasing group of singer-songwriters to have been christened "the next Dylan". Yes, his lyrics tend to flicker towards political dissatisfaction, but tonight his vocal betrays a slight country twang that, along with his ear for a great melody, perhaps places him closer to - similar names aside - Willie Nelson. So all hail Willy Mason - the new Willie.
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