Kirstiecat | Blog

PLEASE VISIT A NEWER REVIEW WITH BETTER AND FASTER LOADING PICTURES: JENS LEKMAN AT PITCHFORK MUSIC FESTIVAL

Well…I finally stopped swooning enough to formulate thoughts and type words (What? No applause, people? Just kidding)

I’ve been anticipating this show for about three months now after having repeatedly played the Maple Leaves and You are the Light eps as well as his full lengths: When I Said I Wanted to Be Your Dog and Oh You’re so Silent Jens. Jens did not disappoint me, either. In real life, he is gentle and meek. He is soft spoken and adored by a few trustworthy fans. And the best part is that he played all of my favorite songs with the perfect accompaniament of cello and violin. Nedelle, a female singer songwriter that Cinchel likes a bit more than me also added some nice backing vocals on many of the songs.

Jens treated us to an intimate rendition of “The Cold Swedish Winter,” as well as a more upbeat “You Are the Light,” “Black Cab,” and, “Happy Birthday, Dear Friend Lisa.” From the very edge of the stage, he did an acoustic rendition of “A Sweet Summer’s Night on Hammer Hill” where the audience all joined in and sang the beat of his heart, “Ba ba da ba da ba da ba da ba…” you get the idea.

At one point, he decided that because of a few disconcerting talkers in the back by the bar, (who were partially only seeming obnoxious because Jens should have everyone’s full undying attention and it was sensed that Jens was pouring his heart out), he walked off the stage and onto the steps (incidentally right next to Cinchel and I) and sang the soft sweet, “Julia.”

In addition, “Tram #7,” and “A Higher Power” had the subtle effect of just flooring me, much as they do on album. The former is especially subtle in its melodic way of creeping up on you when you least expect it. Jens made the song, “Do You Remember the Riots,” even more heartbreaking by telling us it had to do with getting separated from an ex girlfriend during a demonstration against Bush held in the small Swedish town he was in. He explained that when he was separated from her, he realized that it should bring them closer together and when it didn’t, it hit him that it wasn’t really meant to be. This, he clarified, was how George Bush had ruined his love life. He perfectly followed this up with his song “I Saw Her in the Anti-War Demonstration,” though about finding new love in an old love. It was very sweet and sentimental.

After his set, I waited around kind of shy-like before working up the nerve to tell him that I love his songs and that there were whole days this summer in which I listened to nothing else but him.

It’s a good thing I’m in love with Cinchel or I’d probably move to Sweden and never come back. And I could totally live on a diet of Glogg, Swedish potato pancakes, and lingonberries. Seriously, I have to wonder why some of my ancestors ever moved to America in the first place.

The best part about Jens besides the Swedish folky music are the lyrics. Jens is often clever but presents his words in a very understated way much of the time. To read my top ten favorite Jens lyrics and see more pics (I don’t use a flash so unfortunately some of them are blurry as I tried in vain to steady my hands by leaning on the stairwell or Cinchel’s shoulders (or what I call “tripod with a pulse”!)

TOP TEN JENS LYRICS:

1.

Yeah I got busted so I used my one phone call to dedicate a song to you on the radio

-From “You are the Light”

2.

In church on Sunday making out in front of the preacher.
You had a black shirt on with a big picture of Nietzsche.
When we had done our thing for a full christian hour,
I had made up my mind that there must be a higher power.

-from “A Higher Power”

3.

I saw her in the anti war demonstration. It was a sweet sensation of love

-from “I Saw Her in the Anti War Demonstration

4.

“When I said I wanted to be your dog
I wasn’t coming on to you
I just wanted to lick your face
Lick those raindrops from the rainy days”

-from “When I Said I Wanted to be Your Dog”

5.

And if I’ll be your psychologist, who would be the psychologist’s psychologist?

-from “Psycho Girl”

6.

And Lou Reed said in the film “Blue in the face” that compared to New York City Sweden was a scary place
They seem to have a point after meeting with this girl.

-from “The Cold Swedish Winter”

7.

A man walks into a bar orders a beer and a bowl of peanuts but the bar turns into a spaceship and the bartender gives him a haircut. I can’t remember the rest of that joke…

-From “A Man Walks into a Bar”

8.

I know why Mona Lisa smiled. Da Vinci must have been a really funny guy and left her. It’s the only way into my heart.

-from “A Man Walks into a Bar”

9.

I’ll come running with a heart on fire.

-from “Pocketful of Money”

10.

I don’t want a girl who thinks she has to fake. I don’t want a girl who laughs at every little joke I make…I don’t want a girl who thinks there’s only me to please…I don’t want a girl who thinks she has to cater to my every need. I don’t want a girl to go down on her knees. I just want someone to share my life with and that someone could be you.

-from “Someone to Share My Life With”

This entry was posted on Friday, October 21st, 2005 at 10:19 pm and is filed under music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.