Concert Review of the Week: Michael Penn

Michael Penn is a hard musician to characterize. I suppose it isn't easy being brother to Sean and Chris; though some might say it's hard being brother to anyone.

My friend Andrew listened to Michael Penn's Free For All when he was my roommate in 1994. I recall always being rather unimpressed with the music. It seemed too plain and sombre. Maybe it wasn't the music but the attempts at synchronized guitar playing that I didn't care for. At the time, I thought Andrew either had amazingly mature and refined musical tastes, or was a 37-year-old-9:30am-beer-drinking-bald-father-of-three stuck in the body of a 16 year old.

Over the years, I managed to listen to all of Michael Penn's records thinking that I should like the music, and I always enjoyed listening to it, but it never grabbed on to me. It was forgettable, but like visiting your old elementary school, it seemed so familiar and likeable.

At a mere $15, I figured I'd check out Penn at The Rivoli tonight. The small back room had tables and it was nice to not have the sore knees and lower back cramps that usually accompany a concert: very civilized.

The opening act was Rosie Thomas with whom I was not familiar (the Allmusic write up is interesting, and perhaps I should have been familiar with her work). The set was short, but sweet, though, I sensed, a little nervous. At the end of every song she said "thank you very much" in a voice that seemed incongruent with her singing voice and she began clapping. It seemed that she was afraid that there would be silence after her song and she felt that she needed to prompt the audience.

Michael Penn came on shortly afterwards and got right down to business. Playing songs from his new album, Mr. Hollywood, Jr. 1947 and many of his old favourites.

I wasn't sure what to expect from him. His songs always have a strange shroud around them and I had a picture in my mind that Penn might have the same fire as his brothers. His first words were: "I don't mind pictures but flashes make me play in the wrong time signature."

The concert itself was all around fantastic. Penn's voice was bang on and the acoustic set (with piano accompaniment) was lovely. He not only showed his passion by bad mouthing the Bush administration, but his humility; at one point stopping mid song and asking the audience for the line. Penn has a great sense of humour marvelling at one point how odd it was that he had broken two picks in one night.

Finally a musician who says it like it is: "encores are retarded". I have always believed that the encore song and dance that pervades concert going is a joke. Some audiences who don't deserve an encore (or perhaps don't even want one) get one, and audiences who deserve an encore don't get it. After "finishing" his set Penn stated, "this is when I go in the back, you clap and cheer for a while, and then I come back out. I'm just going to sit here and play a few more, okay?"

Taking requests* from the audience and showing us what seemed the true person was so refreshing. There was no bravado, no posturing. Penn was his calm, relaxed self, and, as concerts go, that was a nice change. Penn plays a second night tomorrow (Thursday, September 29, 2005) at The Rivoli. I very highly recommend catching it.

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* Jon and I laughed and laughed at the request (which was denied, sadly) for "Footdown". By far one of the weirdest of his songs, and the Chris Penn backup singing is hilarious.