In the five years since Dirty Projectors last played Ottawa, Dave Longstreth's band of merry weirdoes have undergone a sort of musical epiphany. Kicking off their North American tour with an early evening performance on the Ottawa Bluesfest's breezy River Stage, the Brooklyn sextet seemed much more tranquil and determined.
Without key contributor (and Bitte Orca cover girl) Angel Deradoorian, guitarist Amber Coffman showed just how important her contributions have been to the band, giving Longstreth's usual thorny arrangements a refined and almost affecting makeover. With Dirty Projectors focusing mainly on material from their upcoming release, Swing Lo Magellan, the steadily growing crowd tried their darndest to find a virgin groove to bob their collective heads to.
But it was the fearless, Coffman-led performance of "Stillness Is the Move" that truly exalted the energy both off and onstage. Unfortunately this sweltering quasar burned quickly as the band wrapped up their set, a mere and wanton 45 minutes in, with follow-up track "Useful Chamber" giving the crowd a bountiful but all-too-brief glimpse into Dirty Projectors' kinetic musical theory.
Without key contributor (and Bitte Orca cover girl) Angel Deradoorian, guitarist Amber Coffman showed just how important her contributions have been to the band, giving Longstreth's usual thorny arrangements a refined and almost affecting makeover. With Dirty Projectors focusing mainly on material from their upcoming release, Swing Lo Magellan, the steadily growing crowd tried their darndest to find a virgin groove to bob their collective heads to.
But it was the fearless, Coffman-led performance of "Stillness Is the Move" that truly exalted the energy both off and onstage. Unfortunately this sweltering quasar burned quickly as the band wrapped up their set, a mere and wanton 45 minutes in, with follow-up track "Useful Chamber" giving the crowd a bountiful but all-too-brief glimpse into Dirty Projectors' kinetic musical theory.
