Once, a postscript

Mrs. Speculator and I went to see Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova last week. It was by far one of the best concerts I have ever been to. I’ve found over time that smaller venues are really great for concerts, and they seem to invoke something from the performer to be in such an intimate setting. I know this is pretty much an axiom of performance, but I really have not been to many small venues before. While the concert hall where they performed is not tiny, it only holds maybe 1500 people, if that, and they are close to the stage on three sides. At one point, Hansard looked up to see a balcony of people looking down on him from his right and whirled to find even more in a similar position on his left. At first he seemed taken aback, then he bobbed his head and repeated what appears to be his personal refrain, “Cool.”

I’m trying very hard not to focus on Hansard, though it is pretty clear that he is the driving force behind the band’s work. Irglova seems to be a steadying influence on the band, and after nearly every song, Hansard moves to her side to speak to her. And she has a wonderful ethereal voice that perfectly matches his grounded earthy tones, which still range from low growling to musical shrieks beyond the range of most men not named Steve Perry. But the concert also clearly puts the focus on Hansard—he is the front man and the speaker, as well as the lead singer on most of the songs. And one delightful aspect of him came out as well—the man is a storyteller, which may be the cause or effect of the style of his music. The spaces between each song are filled with Hansard’s story-telling and commentary on his daily life on the road. He spoke intimately with an audience of 1500, making it feel like a performance for a couple of hundred. It may be a very polished act, but it feels like someone you could sit down with and chat for hours—and by the end of the concert I found I really wanted to.

The music itself was marvelous, mixing as it did songs from the soundtrack to Once, songs from their first album and their forthcoming new one, as well as some from Hansard’s original group, the Frames. For good measure, he threw in some Pixies and Van Morrison as well. Irglova played the piano except for a couple of songs where she played acoustic guitar, and there was an instrumental piece as well featuring their violinist, who has released his own CD (and sadly, this was the one place Hansard’s accent really was unintelligible—and with good reason, his name is Colm Mac Con Iomaire). At one point, Hansard brought the stage manager out to play a song as well, and it was clear they had practiced together, as the entire band took part in an American folk song.

And if you haven’t heard the music yet…well, you’ve missed out. I find it described generally as alternative, but I still have no idea what that means. What amazes me is the eclectic mix of genres, from Celtic roots to classical to AC/DC. A lot of his songs are mixes that are inspired, going places that I would not have been able to predict but filled with emotional intensity. A couple of them make me weep at every listening. And this says nothing about his lyrics, which verge (and sometimes fall into) the utterly poetic, well-suited to the instrumentation.

And clearly, between his conversations with his audience, sometimes beseeching their input to him, and the powerful music, he has reached an audience. The one we were a part of were amazed and exuberant, feeding him support and him returning his stories and music, creating a perfect circle of artistic endeavor. There’s no way I can’t go see them again, whenever I can—and while they have taken off on the European leg of their tour, I cannot recommend highly enough that any fan of good music or simple powerful storytelling find a way to see them whenever possible.

Once

I admit it; I have a fondness for musicals. I own a copy of Kiss Me Kate and thoroughly enjoy Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. My beloved Mrs. Speculator, on the other hand...not so much. I completely understand her arguments. Sometimes it is horribly unnatural for people to burst into song about the events unfolding around them (which is why the musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is so wonderfully ingenious), but I tend to just see this as a given in the storytelling that you have to accept. If you don't accept it, then no matter how beautiful the music or profound the lyrics, the movie just isn't going to work for you on its own terms.

Enter Once. Suddenly everything you know about musicals is turned on its ear, as a small little movie sets about breaking all the conventions and succeeding wildly on its terms and those of the musical-loving audeince.

Glen Hansard, lead singer for the Frames, plays a vacuum cleaner repair guy in Dublin who spends his free time making small change as a street musician. One night, the character played by Marketa Irglova, listens to his music and engages in conversation about who the song was written for. She is attractive and he is lonely, if a little unusual in her lifestyle, and it turns out she needs her vacuum cleaner repaired. So she returns to him the next day, and he discovers that she is a talented musician in her own right. She likes his music, he likes her playing, and they begin performing together, because she believes he is good enough to earn a record contract and she is going to help do it.

Unlike the movie musical convention, each song appears organically as the two work on their music and eventually get a back-up band as well. Songs are heard as they rehearse, as they write and as they record. The songs remain part of the story nonetheless, revealing hints of the emotions of the characters, which is a good thing since the actors have no training at all, but are in fact real musicians.

Nevertheless, a real chemistry grows up between the two main characters (known only as Guy and Girl), both of whom have been hurt by the people they love and use the music they create to fill the void they both feel. However, after an aborted attempt at seduction on the part of the guy, there is no overt romance between them; their circumstances will not allow it. But it is clear that they do care immensely for one another and could have a relationship beyond the devoted friendship they share, but they skirt that line throughout the movie. And another movie musical convention goes by the wayside--the two protagonists do not end up together but instead end up in the places they are meant to be. No "boy meets girl, boy loses girls, boy gets girl" tropes here. I found myself flinching throughout the course of the movie as I felt as if the movie was going to veer off the course it had set for itself--something dangerous was going to happen to Girl and Guy was going to have to come to her rescue, throwing them into each others' arms. It never does.

Of course, the music. The movie would be such a minor little thing were not the music astonishing in its power and emotion. The two leads voice their pain and confusion in pared-back, mostly acoustic songs that are heart-wrenching. I will be buying the soundtrack, and perhaps their other album they have put together, and then I'll start looking at buying albums from Hansard's band. Trust my taste or not, women in the audience were weeping at the performances, and not because they were bad. The music makes the movie, and the movie is fresh, original, and quite quite lovely.

Here's the trick. I've been waiting for this movie for about three months. It's a small indie film that is going only to art-house theatres, so you may have to search for it. But do search. Find this movie. If there's any justice in the world, it's going to be up for nominations when awards come around.

[edit -- the day after this posting, I was doing research on the music of Hansard and Irglova, and found the official Once web site, http://www.foxsearchlight.com/once/. The soundtrack runs continually in the background, all the songs, on repeat. It's a good way to hear this outstanding music.]