Only a couple of records lately have pulled me from song to song to the end; one was Van Morrison's Down the Road and the other was Noe Venable's Boots. Though Venable's soprano is so snowy that it's nearly a fault, she gets away with it by singing as/for the besmirchable "stolen thing" who'll "do things I'll regret." You'd never guess that Boots was "recorded in various living rooms", the sound, the multi-instrumental arrangements and the musicianship are brilliant, and guitarist Venable's mysterious, melodious vignettes resonate with unforced poetry and a viewpoint that's all her own-- "Julia" is just the ballad of a friendship, but somebody must've left the window open, because you're shivering. No surprise that young genii like drummer Scott Amendola and everything-player Todd Sickafoose are involved; the latter anchors Venable's trio along with violinist Alan Lin. Venable's been cruising the Bay Area for Several Years, recently touring in support of ani DiFranco, and she hasn't peaked. With Superman Loses the Girl and Molly Bryant (Venable second).
At Beyond Baroque, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice;
Sun., May 26th, 7:30 p.m. (310) 822-3006
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