Throwback Thursday - Fiona Apple Live

This post originally appeared on my tumblr on Oct. 1 2012. Funny how at the time I rarely went to live shows.

Fiona Apple - The Live Experience

I don’t go to many shows, mainly because artists I like are either dead or do not play near me often enough or both. So when I do go, it’s going to be a big deal. Last night was no different. Fiona Apple is a performer that I felt was important to see live at least once, since she’s sort of an unstable talent, and I mean that in a good way. Her songs are raw emotion set to music and as great as her albums are, the live experience had to be better. I wasn’t wrong.

The Fillmore in Miami Beach is a great venue and really fit perfectly with Fiona’s general vibe. It’s small enough to be intimate, but big enough to be able to contain her orchestral explosions. I wish we’d had better seats, since there were moments where we got to hear the band jam while Fiona did some things on the stage floor for the first few rows. But, really, the band was so great, it’s a minor complaint. 

They kicked off with Fast as You Can, which was dynamic and a good way to let you know how great they were going to sound from then on. Following that with On The Bound and then some other cuts from the first two albums made sure everyone was comfortable.

Interesting, to me, was that when she got Extraordinary Machine and Idler Wheel material, the crowd of damaged girls, hipsters, young and old, and generally lovers of good music, was not only excited, but singing along. I didn’t think Extraordinary Machine was a popular album, but but the title track was actually one of the biggest crowd pleasers.

The old adage of leaving them wanting more is good way to describe what happened at the end. After a rousing cover of Conway Twitty’s It’s Only Make Believe, Fiona leaped across the stage never to return. The lights came up and the roadies started taking everything down. No Limp, no Criminal, no more. All in all, it felt a little short, but was more than made up for by the power of what we did hear.