See CAMERA OBSCURA w/ The Papercuts @ The Bluebird (21+)
Monday November 30
9 p.m.
$15
When I first heard Camera Obscura's 2003 Underavhievers Please Try Harder, I imagined a sweet younger sister of fellow Glasgow natives, Belle and Sebastian. A couple years, two albums and what seemed like a lot of growing pains later, the group have developed a solid identity and polished pop sound without overdoing it. As Brooklyn Vegan put it in a recent show review, 2009 is really the breakthrough year for these guys. That comes with the release of My Maudlin Career(4AD Records) and their subsequent extensive international tour.
The heart of the group is frontwoman Tracyanne Campbell, who has crafted thoughtful, charming and sentimental songwriting without take things too seriously by being melodramatic or whiny. She might not have the pipes of a Supreme, but nearly every Camera Obscura song evokes a sudden empathy and subconscious tapping of the foot. Her crooning voice is backed up by an instrumentation just as expressive and catchy, especially in its string arrangement.
"French Navy" video from My Maudlin Career
If you go through the motions of Campbell's repertoire since Obscura's inception in 1996, you will find an identifiable coming of age tale. And although she's clearly matured, it's nice to see that one doesn't have to always let go of her girlish charms and quirks to grow up.
See you at the show tomorrow!
-Stefania
