Can you believe it?
In support of her new album Come Home to Mama, Canadian singer-songwriter Martha Wainwright came to Guelph on Oct. 20 to play a solo gig at the River Run Centre. Some of you may have heard of Wainwright and her brother Rufus, who are the proud children of American singer Loudon Wainwright and Canadian folk hero Kate McGarrigle.
Wainwright, the descendent of music royalty, started the show at 8 p.m. wearing a plaid shirt, brown leggings, and green leg warmers. Jokingly apologizing to the half-filled hall, Wainwright said that she forgot her stage dress back at the hotel and simply “didn’t have time to retrieve it.” Wainwright’s performance was less about pizzazz and was heavily focused on emotionally raw moodiness and the vulnerability of motherhood, heard clearly in tracks like “Proserpina.”
Wainwright played a total of 16 songs, half from her most recent release, and the remaining a collection of traditional numbers that could pass for a Canadian music history lesson. Her wide-reaching vocals ranged from wailing blues to sultry delicacy, not unlike an early Joni Mitchell. Her frank sultriness was especially highlighted in the opening line of her new song “Can You Believe It?” that went, “I really like makeup sex, it’s the only kind I ever get.”
Wainwright explored varied themes, from disillusionment in “I Know You’re Married, But I’ve Got Feelings, Too,” to love in “Bleeding All Over You.” Despite a lack of accompaniment, her guitar-focused melodies were well matched by her subtle, dreamy vocals. But the highlight was the slow-paced, ravished number called “I’m a Diamond,” that brought the older members of the audience to near-tears. The album Come Home to Mama, from Cooperative Records, was recorded partially at Sean Lennon’s home in New York City, and produced there by Japanese multi-instrumentalist, Yuka Honda. Using her unique lyrical style paired with tender confessions, Wainwright creates both a sweet narrative of maternal joy and reflections on the disappointment of adulthood.
I was there and I couldn’t agree more. Her voice and guitar soared and she is very funny. My only regret is that she didn’t sing one of my favourites, Dis quand reviendras-tu? I’m a big fan and was not disappointed.