The last time I saw Imogen was about three years ago at the 9:30 Club, and I was pleased to see that not much has changed. She put on an enchanting show three years ago and an even more magical show last night. There were two opening solo musicians. They were both loopers, like Imogen, but it's always exciting to see and listen to as a song is built up out of individual loops and effects. The first guy (and I am really sorry I don't remember their names) mostly built the loops off his guitar and keyboard and some pregenerated stuff on a computer. The second guy was much more into improvisation, vocalizing sounds and then manipulating them on the fly. At one point he grabbed a Saitek gaming joystick and walked out into the audience where he vocalized sounds and then manipulated them on the fly with the joystick. That was impressive. Imogen's stage set up was actually quite similar to her show in 2006. She used the same piano/keyboard and different props, but for the same purpose, basically. Most of the songs she did were off her recent release, Ellipse, which I've been listening to in regular rotation for the last few weeks. It grew on me quickly and I was happy to see the songs performed live. Toward the end she brought a local cellist on stage to help out with a song and then to assist in an improvisational song. Finally, during the encore, Imogen got the audience to participate in two songs making for an exciting interactive experience.
Most of the photos I took weren't usable, but here are four decent shots.
