Neko Case 'retrospective' concert marks high point in long, productive career

Mary Nahorniak | USA TODAY

NEW YORK — Live at the Apollo, it's Neko Case!

Case, a singer/songwriter with a decades-long career developing an evolving brand of "country noir," recently released a career box set on vinyl, Truckdriver, Gladiator, Mule. She performed on Friday at New York's Apollo Theater in a release party and career retrospective rolled into one. Case isn't on tour at the moment, so the performance wasn't as polished as she and her band typically are when they're promoting a record, but that made it more intimate, something that could be difficult for some artists to achieve in a venue like the historic Harlem Apollo.

It's tempting to want to call it a once-in-a-lifetime show, but instead it seems like an appropriate moment for Case and her fans to pause and appreciate what she's achieved so far: eight albums and a very distinct sound. She joked on stage that she learned after the fact that putting out a box set is "something people don't do when they're alive." But Case is a working musician and likely always will be, so we say here's to another box set and look-back concert in a decade or two.

First impression: Wait a second ... where's Case's backup singer and stage foil Kelly Hogan? Where are the evocative set backdrops that feature Case's drawings? Where's the drummer? The lineup was Case up front, plus bandmates Jon Rauhouse on guitar and pedal steel, Eric Bachmann on guitar and keyboards, and Tom Ray on bass guitar and stand-up bass — and that's it. Ray was a one-man rhythm section, stomping on a tambourine to keep time. The set-up was smaller than her touring performances and far more intimate because of it. The lineup also allowed the band to showcase some of her earlier songs, which tend to be more stripped-down and traditional country. It was an odd juxtaposition, a show that felt more like it might feel to see them perform in a bar (and Case has spent years on the road doing just that) but inside the ornate, beautiful Apollo theater. It made for an unforgettable night.

Highlight of the night: Judging by the applause and cheers, the crowd favorites were a stripped-down This Tornado Loves You and Margaret vs. Pauline. But Case's full vocal abilities were best showcased on Look for Me (I'll Be Around),Maybe Sparrow and Knock Loud, when she let her distinct and powerful voice take over the room. They were goosebump-inducing, beautiful performances of classic Case songs.

Biggest snooze: While the absence of Hogan and Case's drummer let Case's voice shine through and made for some creative "remixes" of songs, we did miss Hogan's stage presence, banter and lovely vocals, and the thump of the drums keeping time. (Case explained toward the end of the show that Hogan is touring with the Decemberists and working on a new album and that her drummer was home with a new baby.)

Most welcome surprise: Case played several early-career songs that she admitted the band hadn't performed in a while. They included Duchess from her 1998 first release, The Virginian, as well as Lady Pilot and the title track from Blacklisted, released in 2000. She bantered that part of why she hasn't performed Duchess much is because it's written for a higher register and she didn't "know enough about music" when she wrote it to know she could simply sing it in a more manageable key.

The crowd: Music nerds, and we say that with love. The audience wasn't especially hipster (thankfully), nor particularly young, but was clearly people who understand and appreciate Case's sound and place in American music. It was a good mix of men and women, with an average age of probably late 30s-40s. While most were reverently listening to Case's performance (see above re: music nerds), there was the occasional person shouting out song titles while the band took breaks to tune their instruments. Case handled it with grace and humor, and even seemed to consider a request for Guided By Wire. One couple took their song request a bit too far: After Case denied their pleas for Teenage Feeling, the woman hopped up on stage post-show and proposed to her boyfriend on the live mike, hoping an engagement might change the singer's mind. (Case did not come back out.)

The venue: The Apollo made for a fantastic setting for Case and her band. It's impossible not to feel the theater's history, seeing the marquee, photos throughout the foyer of acts who've played, the ornate red and gilded interior, and touches you don't find anymore in theaters, like bathroom attendants. ("Don't you want a lollipop or a mint, honey? Take your candy!" the attendant implored women as she handed out towels at the sink.) It's an overall different — and very welcome — experience compared to newer, sanitized clubs that have perfectly engineered sound but lack character. Friday's show was originally set for the Brooklyn Masonic Temple but was moved uptown to the Apollo to create more space, and Case apologized on stage for the change but called the venue "super awesome." It's hard to disagree.

what is this /storm/ of white people at the apollo? oh, a neko case concert. — allison (@andthenisay) December 5, 2015

Awaiting Neko Case at the Apollo Theater. I've seen her in many a venue, but this tops them all. — AmyEll Duke-Benfield (@Aedukefield) December 5, 2015

Supporting act: Soren Juul, a charming Scandinavian singer/songwriter, set the stage for Case. Juul has been called the "Danish Bon Iver," and he performed a half-dozen songs as a solo act, building guitar and keyboard layers through looping and reverb. His songs were dreamy, the kind of music you can lose track of time to, while still being heart-wrenching at times. Some of the sonar noises he created were reminiscent of the beginnings of some of Case's songs, so Juul fit right in as a warm-up to the main act. He washed away the work week and put the crowd in the right mindset for a night of live music.

What did everyone else think? They were into it. There was a restriction on photos and video during the performance, so there aren't as many images on social media as you'd usually see after a concert, but those who posted about it seemed to enjoy it. It was a night to remember.

Neko Case earlier tonite @ the Apollo in Harlem. Lots of great old stuff. One of the most powerful voices out there. pic.twitter.com/d3LAvLGqNI — Neil Shah (@NeilShahWSJ) December 5, 2015