Armed with an arsenal of acoustic guitars and a house band, unofficial feminist hero and indie-folk darling Ani DiFranco took over the Westcott Theatre Friday. A legion of 700 fans swarmed the jam-packed venue for several hours before the show began. Each had the same passionately independent attitude DiFranco has cultivated and perfected over the course of her 20-year career. The merchandise table withstood lines of devotees waiting to outfit themselves in a uniform of DiFranco T-shirts and bags.
For more than an hour and a half, the singer led the crowd through a freewheeling set list, even claiming at one point in her performance, "This set has no rhyme or reason." The audience didn't seem to notice or mind because every tune brought with it faithful sing-alongs and wild cheers.
DiFranco's untitled tour will travel up and down the East Coast until March. From there the venues branch out west until its final stop in New Orleans in May. Fellow indie artists Gaby Moreno, a surprisingly unsigned artist from Guatemala City, Guatemala, and Erin McKeown, a graduate from Brown University and a folk-rock singer-songwriter, opened the Syracuse show. Both singers will be joining DiFranco for the remainder of the winter leg of her tour.
Moreno warmed the crowd up with a six-song set. Joined by her friends-turned-band members Leslie Lowe on bass guitar and Sebastian Aymanns on drums and background vocals, Moreno captivated hundreds of ears and hearts with a soulful vibrato that seemed to be stolen right out of the throat of Janis Joplin. The music was simple: a singular bluesy guitar, uncomplicated percussive beats and an even bass flow. Moreno used her talent to keep things simple, making the crowd like the music but not know the reason why.
Donning a flowing tunic, simple blue jeans and a messy head of brown curls, Moreno invoked an atypical image of the typical indie musician. She had personality, humor and, more importantly, fun. Her humble Guatemalan beginnings were showcased on two tracks sung entirely in Spanish.
"Even if you can't understand the words, I hope you can rock out to the rhythms," she quipped. In the middle of her finale, she proudly exclaimed, "This is where the guitar solo goes, but I don't have one so I'm just going to scat." Scat she did, much to the excitement of the audience. Moreno sounds like the next big thing to appear on a Starbucks compilation disc.
Just as the crowd's anticipation was turning from excited to impatient, the 40-year-old DiFranco took to the stage. She welcomed the crowd with a silent grin while being bombarded with ecstatic cheers. An obligatory introduction and a "thank you" to the audience ensued, followed by the opening chords to "Done Wrong" from her 1996 album "Dilate" From the first seconds of "Done Wrong," DiFranco displayed a signature stage presence: purposefully and passionately strumming her acoustic guitar to match the power of her voice.
DiFranco continued with "Half-Assed," from 2006's "Reprieve," which showcased her recognizable style of metaphorically heavy writing. One line from the song reads, "You are an untruly translucent, a dirty windshield with a shifting view." Smart, direct and relatable: DiFranco's lyrics are acclaimed by music critics and fans alike, which was clearly evident by the number of people shouting the words back at her.
Continuing her set with what she described as a "song about delayed reactions," DiFranco balanced syncopated guitar chords with drawn-out bass rhythms and moments of heavy instrumentation with those of vocal solos. In the moments where her voice was the only audible instrument, DiFranco showed a confident vulnerability that comes only after decades of performing.
"Shy," off of the 2007 compilation "Canon," was a quickly recognizable crowd favorite. Dozens of people gave in to its rhythmic satisfaction and started dancing uncontrollably. Another crowd-pleaser was "Napoleon," from "Canon." The track garnered the strongest reaction from the audience during the show. DiFranco encouraged a mass sing-along so large that it almost eclipsed the sound of her own voice during the chorus.
The most instrument-heavy song of the night was one that DiFranco did not even write. In a strong political statement, she performed a song from the 1930s that repeatedly begged the question, "Whose side are you on?" Featuring lengthy standing bass and xylophone solos, DiFranco enjoyably conceded the spotlight to the other talented musicians of her band.
The concert was a complete package. DiFranco and company lit up The Westcott Theatre with entertaining performances and crowd-pleasing song selections. Not to be outdone, Moreno emerged as a new favorite for many DiFranco fans, while DiFranco herself delivered a controlled but vibrant performance that testified to the longevity and success of her career.
omstdeni@syr.edu
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