Event Flight of the Conchords • Bic Runga
City Los Angeles
State California
Venue Largo
Date July 08, 2008
The simple novelty of a girl and a guitar has long since worn out its Lilith Fair welcome since its late nineties heyday, but on occasion an artist will come along who reminds us that all trends have their merits. Case in point: New Zealand sweetheart Bic Runga. Here is a singer/songwriter that makes no pretense for her lack of bombast. Her songs are carried by a voice that can be direct, yearning and haunting all at once. She is perhaps best known as the singer of the song “Sway” from her album “Drive,” but sitting in the smallish Coronet Theater that Largo now calls home, I was startled by the depth and quality of her songbook.
Although Ms. Runga was the star of her own show, she shared the stage this evening with fellow New Zealanders Flight of the Conchords. The addition of a comedy duo to Runga’s set may have been a bit disconcerting to fans of Runga but beyond the inherent humor fund in all of The Conchords songs, they are in fact, accomplished songwriters. A fact highlighted by Bic’s slight teasing of their Grammy win.
Flight of the Conchords follow in that great tradition of great comedy duos Hope and Crosby, Abbott and Costello, and Laurel and Hardy, although it’s hard to imagine any of those other combos receiving the kind of female fan adulation that The Conchords are accustomed to at this point. Members Bret and Jemaine have great chemistry with each other and it was a treat to see them crack each other up during their set. They’re banter is like watching a tennis game between two champion players volleying back and forth, each one trading the “straight man” role.
By this point, Flight of the Conchords songs are legend, YouTube hits and MySpace mainstays. Performed tonight were “Faux du Fafa,” “Sellotape” and a new song detailing the sad state of rappers who are more “vincible” than they may appear. What makes The Conchords songs great is that they are written and performed completely straight and serious. I think humor works best when the person telling the joke doesn’t know it’s funny, as if it is some subconscious act and Flight of the Conchords understand this.
One of the most surprising moments of the night came as Brett and Jemaine shared back up vocals on one of Bic’s songs. Surprising because it showed off a vocal range that I wasn’t aware The Conchords possessed. The moment was overshadowed by titters in the crowd that mistook their singing for another put on but such snipes were quickly silenced by the songs beauty and honesty.
Tags: bic runga, flight of the conchords
Music
Film & TV
