Hitting the three-hour mark is a feat for any lone dude even without the (rather name-dropping) tales so let’s get straight into it. With about 15 guitars clustered behind him on stage like a choir of little wooden children, Ben Harper did everything possible to please the Plenary and boy did they appreciate. Despite ending up feeling like a babysitter watching a kid grab each of his prized toys to show you how good he is at mucking about with them, Harper’s talent and praxis is unmistakable on the folk map and his humour and emotion provided some truly magical moments.
Admiration for Marvin Gaye shot out early with the Californian hitting the vibraphone for Trouble Man, his gorgeously controlled voice in turns forceful and then tender, almost crying. The butterfly valves on the vibes were spinning subtly, but during particular phrases he controlled their speed to make the instrument sing. This was followed by Another Lonely Day and his signature Gaye track, Sexual Healing. Dude may be 43 but he could’ve had any loins in the place after that.
During Walk Away I swore to God I could smell an ex-boyfriend’s cologne, and then the slide guitar came out for Hallelujah. The spectrum of sounds it emitted was astonishing, and I stared at Harper’s knees to see if he was using a stompbox; no, via masterful technique he mimicked deep percussive tones whilst still drawing beautiful chords and melodies.
After one and a bit hours, Harper did the ol’ off-stage-on-stage shuffle and began the first encore with a new track on the piano. The chords were crashing and old school, sort of parlour style, and Harper desperately shouted, “I’m trying not to fall in love with you” over the top in a heartrending plea.
The Boss was next given a nod, and Harper used Atlantic City to illustrate a pretty neat talent: using mic proximity to create dynamism and real depth. Please Bleed was expectedly dark but resplendent, like a black crystal, and chugged into a fucking incredible rendition of Nirvana’s Something In The Way at the end. Harper used the flat of his hand against the strings to slowly, eerily thump out the chords. Cue off-on shuffle. Among a bunch of others, The Drugs Don’t Work, Morning Yearning and Amen Omen finished off the second encore. Some of the Harper’s original rhymes are pretty inane when you think about it, but I forgave him all of them because for almost the entire set the atmosphere was sifting and tingling like when somebody accidentally leaves the snare turned on. He’s still got it.
BY ZOË RADAS
LOVED: Our seats. Thanks!
HATED: Doing the climb of shame over 20 knees, as we were tardy.
DRANK: A nip from a hipflask.
