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December 23, 2008
Sissy Wish @ Hi-Dive, Denver 12.9.2008
[All photos by Merry Swankster]
Earlier this month a not unexpectedly, though still embarrassingly empty Hi-Dive greeted Norwegian pop songstress Sissy Wish to Denver. At its peak not more than twenty-five people could be counted - including staff. It seemed even more empty with 95% of that crowd lurking far back from the stage in the dark shadows of the drafty venue. A Tuesday night booking in weather that, it goes without saying, was less than favorable probably didn't help matters. Unfortunately for the slumbering uninitiated and those who declined the guaranteed warmth of an early week Nordic pop exposition, they missed what very well could be the most strangely honest and surprising show of the year.
Sissy Wish's star is Siri Wålberg and her unique approach to live performance could not be better described than by simply taking accounts from the few witnesses who fell in love with her adorable goofiness. The way Wålberg's oddball bowl of a hairstyle betrays her perfect face-framing cheekbones is an appropriate analogy for her striking stage persona. While I'm told she enjoys massive success in Norway, similar notions get relegated to the proverbial 'big in Japan' for oversea audiences with no context for what that means. I might as well mention that Sissy Wish won a Norwegian Grammy in 2004 with her debut You May Breathe (true). Since both achievements are as relevant to non-Norwegians as the evil fun that can be had debating the hilarity of nationally tailored Grammys, it basically becomes a punchline. One that we should probably refrain from indulging in.
Sissy Wish's live production provided a great case for why richly textured pop is a genre best enacted by professionals behind the cornucopia of a digital soundboard. When one can clearly tell there is more going on than just button pushing and rotating of knobs the experience of modern shows is enhanced. Of course, no manner of technical observation can make up for the missing energy that comes only from excited crowds. The swaggering "Yayaya" enticed as best it could for an all out dance party, but the toxic mix of painfully sparse space and extreme avoidance of human pack-breaking ultimately doomed one of Beauties Never Die standouts. Instead of wiggling masses of humanity we got to see the "magic" it takes to create Sissy Wish's music. It is cool though to see it happen before your very eyes. Call me old fashioned but I'm a sucker for organically grown electronic music. Organic electronic music. It's a brave new world.
Wålberg embodies a convoluted mix of self-conscious awkwardness in this new bravery, like that of a hyper-observant, doe-eyed tourist constantly taking stock of its surroundings. Girly artifacts from Grease-era Olivia Newton-John distinctly permeated her singing. From her style to her looks, there was the appearance of unfaithfully backing away from awareness by overloading on helpings of femininity. Buttered together with goofy marionette dance moves, the result is something altogether original and impossible not to love. Her jerky dancing was nothing but infectious, evidenced empirically by a good quarter of the crowd boogieing along to the entrancing performance. While a fourth of < 25 people would typically be a sad showing, comparing proportionally, such an amount of people rarely exude such feedback. Even popular acts with familiar material often struggle to engage a similar crowd percentage. When complete unknowns like Sissy Wish do it, the entire experience becomes that much more genuine
There's no way of knowing if future forays through America will produce better door takes. It would be excellent to think so. Better still if more come out to feed back the energy that Siri so desperately begs to feed off from.
Stocking stuffer:
'Best of' list season is in in full effect. Here's a glimpse back to last year's #50.
Previously:
Sissy Wish, Live @ the Knitting Factory Tap Bar, NYC 07.08.2008
Posted by Merry Swankster at December 23, 2008 12:00 PM
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