It would take a hard, cruel heart not to fall in love with Dawn Landes.

She bounces onto Scala’s stage bearing a huge grin, looking for all the world like she has barely been able to contain her excitement to play to this specific group of people. After half an hour of exhilarating country pop, she leaves to the kind of roar usually reserved for headliners.

Dearland appear in the crowd with a sax, trombone and bass drum, navigating their way around the room to the stage where Elvis Perkins appears, his long hair and soft brimmed hat making him look like a cross between the troubadour that he is and a Civil War bushwhacker.

Those familiar with Perkins on record but not in person might have been surprised by his warmth and good humour. For all the heart-wrenching pain of 'Ash Wednesday', he is, after all, human, and an enormously talented one at that. The most spellbinding moment of the night is when Perkins is left alone onstage and he starts to gently play those gorgeous opening notes to ‘While You Were Sleeping’. One by one, the band return until the song builds to a transcendent climax.

Later, after enduring ten minutes of people shouting “Shampoo!!!”, Perkins and Dearland finally play the opener from Elvis Perkins In Dearland and the crowd goes nuts. This was as resolutely heart-warming a musical experience as is likely to occur in this city in 2009.

Mark Grassick
Photo: Rachel Lipsitz