Concert review: Bonnie “Prince” Billy

Our ABC News friend and colleague Brian Campbell offers this review of the Bonne Prince Billy show in Alexandria, VA this weekend:

Suburban DC’s Birchmere – the table-seated music outpost tucked away in Alexandria, Virginia, proved an apt backdrop for Bonnie "Prince" Billy’s roaming collage of musicianship. Touring in support of his latest release, "Beware" – Will Oldham’s band, which at times ranged from 6 to 8 deep, delivered a nuanced and well textured performance.

Oldham’s music has long defied neat categorization, wandering through the neighborhoods of folk, country and rock, without seeming to take up permanent residence in any of those genres. The performance on Saturday night certainly fit that mold. Oldham and company ranged through his catalog, seeming to alternate between delicate, twang-filled melodies and straight ahead rockers. Highlights included several cuts from 2009′s Beware including Beware Your Only Friend, I don’t Belong to Anyone and Without Word, You Have Nothing. Fans of earlier work were not left wanting with rocking renditions of Just to See My Holly Home (from 2001′s Ease Down the Road), The Brute Choir (a holdover from Oldham’s prior band, Palace Music) and a surprisingly uptempo version of Love Comes to Me (from 2006′s sparse "The Letting Go").

The often crowded stage, combined with the dynamic of having both a violin and tenor sax, certainly put a good deal of stress on the sound engineers, and at times Oldham’s vocals were lost in a morass of guitar distortion on the heavier numbers. However, the band seemed to thrive in its own flexibility – showing an understanding of the raw power in its heavier numbers, and the refined power of the more restrained tunes.

In the end, the performance provided a little something for everyone… people new to Oldham’s music were treated to a range of his sounds and styles, while more seasoned vets sampled live interpretations of his catalog. Bonnie Prince Billy will be on tour through June 13.

Check out a playlist from the new album below:

Beware