\n
![](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/reviewermagazine.com\/the-national.jpg?w=900\")
<\/p>\nhttp:\/\/reviewermagazine.com\/the-national-and-ferraby-show.html<\/p>\n
@ House of Blues San Diego on May 28<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n
Show review by Matt Powers<\/p>\n
With its ornate carpeting, wooden architecture, and tiny stage the House of Blues feels more like a Shakespearean courtyard than a traditional rock venue. And that worked fine for opener Ferraby Lionheart. With his scarf, anachronistic name, and heavy scruff, Ferraby looked like a modern troubadour.<\/p>\n
This look was matched by his music. Both reflective and forward-thinking, Ferraby subtly transcended the folk paradigm with his eclectic brand of Tin Pan Alley pop, heavily structured compositions, and unpretentious poetry.<\/p>\n
Gorgeous classical influences permeated the set as well. And although there was a cellist onboard the influence was most pervasive stylistically. The precise, deliberate instrumentation recalled the orchestral, baroque pop of the 60s while Ferraby’s smooth delivery and whimsical lyrics was reminiscent of classic, WWII-era songsmiths.<\/p>\n
The happy-go-lucky \u201cCrack in Time\u201d best embodied Ferraby’s sound. The light twang, mid-tempo strumming, and literary lyrics recalled Billy Bragg or even an updated version of a Woody Guthrie ballad.<\/p>\n
Shades of indie rock pervaded as well. The gem \u201cThe Ballad of Gus and Sam\u201d was dominated by an aloof-cool vocals (\u201cthe conversation\u2019s great\/ yeah I can tell\u201d), an insistent jangle, and an infectious \u201cooo ooo\u201d chorus that sounded straight London hipster.<\/p>\n
Though an anomaly from his set, it served as an appropriate transition for the headliner act. Indie rockers The National took stage to a, now, claustrophobic House of Blues. And it was a fitting atmosphere for their songs: a mixture of forlorn romanticism and hopeful intensity, the songs are often as suffocating as the New York City milieu that they come from.<\/p>\n
The set relied heavily on their latest two albums: Alligator and Boxer. \u201cMistaken for Strangers\u201d lost some of it\u2019s haunting, post-punk chill in the live setting but was transformed into an engaging rocker. \u201cAbel\u201d was mesmerizing with its dramatic stop-starts while utilizing singer Matt Beringer’s booming baritone to full effect. Alligator\u2019s \u201cMr. November,\u201d meanwhile, was as inspiring as a closer should be. And throughout the night unofficial member and multi-instrumentalist Padma Newsome\u2019s electrifying violin work perfectly synchronized with the power chords from the Dessner twins.<\/p>\n
But the slower songs \u2013 the songs that make up most the band’s oeuvre \u2013 didn’t maintain same power. \u201cFake Empire,\u201d \u201cDaughters of the SoHo Riots,\u201d and \u201cSecret Meeting\u201d were adequate and all but still indistinct and unrevealing.<\/p>\n
Nonetheless the night as a whole was more than adequate. Both of the night’s acts demonstrated the vast spectrum of roots music. From Ferraby\u2019s stylized acoustic pop to The National\u2019s Springsteen-inflected post-punk the night showcased two poles of Americana at the top of their game.<\/p>\n
MP<\/p>\n
Below ~ The National:
\n<\/p>\n
Farraby Lionheart:
\n![](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/reviewermagazine.com\/Ferraby-Lionheart%20.jpg?w=900\")
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
http:\/\/reviewermagazine.com\/the-national-and-ferraby-show.html The National with Ferraby Lionheart @ House of Blues San Diego on May 28 Show review by Matt Powers With its ornate carpeting, wooden architecture, and tiny stage the House of Blues feels more like a Shakespearean courtyard than a traditional rock venue. And that worked fine for opener Ferraby Lionheart. With his scarf, anachronistic name, and heavy scruff, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[493],"class_list":["post-483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive","tag-the-national-with-ferraby-lionheart-show"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":263,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2007\/03\/15\/motus-at-house-of-blues-san-diego-207\/","url_meta":{"origin":483,"position":0},"title":"Motus at House Of Blues, San Diego, 2\/07","author":"admin","date":"March 15, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Here's some photos of Motus from backstage at their early-evening February, 2007, House Of Blues show in San Diego. All pics shot by me, Reviewer Rob, because I'm kinda awesome. ~RR","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1614,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2009\/11\/28\/national-parks-pamphlet-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":483,"position":1},"title":"National Parks pamphlet review","author":"admin","date":"November 28, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"[Gov't Issue Recreation]Our National Parks Need You!We\u2019re Off to the National Mall & Memorials! National Mall & Memorial Parks Guide to DC Area Parks & MemorialsBooks and printed matter review Kent Manthie americanparknetwork.com OhRanger.com If you want to take your family on a history-filled, educational and exciting vacation, try taking\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1795,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2010\/01\/13\/sonic-youth-show-san-diego-hob-1710\/","url_meta":{"origin":483,"position":2},"title":"SONIC YOUTH SHOW – San Diego HOB 1\/7\/10","author":"Kent","date":"January 13, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Sonic Youth - House of Blues, San Diego January 7, 2010 [Unattended] review By Kent Manthie Something finally great rolled into San Diego on Thursday night: Sonic Youth played at the San Diego House of Blues. SY now are officially a quintet with the addition of producer\/engineer extraordinaire, Jim O\u2019Rourke,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "music"","block_context":{"text":"music","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":167,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2006\/10\/29\/the-cramps-hob-sd-show-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":483,"position":3},"title":"The Cramps, HOB SD, show review","author":"admin","date":"October 29, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"The Cramps @ House of Blues, San Diego \u2013 10\/24\/06 Review by Kent Manthie Tuesday, October 24 at San Diego\u2019s newest and now best place to see concerts, House of Blues, which is really a swell place, a cavernous pit with a high shaft of a ceiling and last night\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":507,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2008\/09\/10\/long-beach-blues-festival-review-by-jim-steinfeldt\/","url_meta":{"origin":483,"position":4},"title":"Long Beach Blues Festival review by Jim Steinfeldt","author":"admin","date":"September 10, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"http:\/\/reviewermagazine.com\/long-beach-blues.htmlThe 29th Annual Long Beach Blues FestivalRainbow Lagoon Park Saturday and Sunday 8\/30-31\/08 Chuck Berry, John Mayall, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Roy Young, Pinetop Perkins, Roy Rogers, Taj Mahal, Booker T. Jones, Charlie Musselwhite, Eddie Floyd, Ana Popovic and 2nd stage artists.Story and photos by Jim Steinfeldt Everyone was having\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":237,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2007\/02\/12\/pennywisecircle-jerksignite-show-review-hob-l-a\/","url_meta":{"origin":483,"position":5},"title":"Pennywise\/Circle Jerks\/Ignite show review – HOB L.A.","author":"admin","date":"February 12, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Pennywise\/Circle Jerks\/Ignite Feb. 1 @ Sunset House of Blues show review by Bradley Schweit A mere glance at the line snaking around the corner at the Sunset House of Blues and one could easily ascertain one of two things: A) either the venue was hosting a MotoXXX party, or B)\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=483"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/483\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}