Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Ready to be heartbroken

Last night I had plans with my friend B to go see Camera Obscura play. We had a class together until 5:30 and figured we'd go out for a bite to eat afterwards, so we started walking to our destination with J, who is also in our Feminist Media Studies class. J ended up having dinner with us, and it turned out she was also planning to go to the show. What's more, over our bowls of vegetarian chili, it was determined that J had written her master's thesis on 1980s British twee/indie pop. This was turning into a theme night.

After bracing ourselves with allongés for the blistering cold outside, we headed out for the five-block walk to the venue. I couldn't believe I hadn't worn long johns. My thighs were like ice after two blocks. J decided to go home and drop off her school bag, and B and I carried on, to have a drink across the street before heading into the show. We never saw J again. The show was packed. It was kind of a funny crowd, but in ways that totally made sense: Everyone was adorable and clean-cut! There were more affectionate straight couples than at a high-school dance!

Anyway, Camera Obscura sounded great and were also adorable as all get-out. Towards the end of "Let's Get Out of this Country," singer Traceyanne Campbell broke into a few rounds of "If you'll be my bodyguard, I can be your long-lost pal," which may well be the cutest thing I've ever heard. (I always liked that song, partly because in high school, when it came out, everyone already did call me Al.) You should see them if they happen to come to your town on this tour. In the meantime, there always seem to be lots of dowloadable mp3s of their songs floating around out there, and fans of classic musicals, fabric prints, and general sweetness alike will want to watch the video for "Lloyd, I'm Ready To Be Heartbroken."

Have an adorable day! Wear long johns if it's below -15!

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

My sweetheart just loaded my iPod with the Camera Obscura album and I love it. It feels like a way to indulge my love of Connie Francis and her ilk without losing any last remaining dregs of hipness.

Chris said...

Sounds like a very synchronous evening! Love "Let's Get Out of this Country" and I always get nice Lloyd Cole flashbacks with "...Heartbroken."

Anonymous said...

You had me, then I checked their schedule. I will be out of town when they are in mine!

Jenn and Adam said...

I just missed seeing Camera Obscura here on Wednesday. I wanted to go, but there were other shows I wanted to see more. Sucks because supposedly they played a fantastic show. :(

Cari said...

I saw this title and shrieked "Lloyd Cole!" before even reading the post. God, we're getting old.

And now that'll be in my head all damn day.

(Which means I'll be pronouncing "vitamins" wrong for who knows how long until the effects wear off)

Cari said...

Clarification. I'll have the Lloyd Cole song in my head...

Elizabeth said...

Love Camera Obscura. They're not coming to Houston, though - or even Austin. Maybe on the next leg of their tour? I hope? Sounds like you had a great night.

Anonymous said...

You are very very brave. My advice for when it's -15 (are you talking CELCIUS!?!) is MOVE! ;)

Megan said...

I'm a big Lloyd Cole fan and I've never heard of this! I'm so in the dark. I wonder what he thinks of this.

Thanks for the linky.

Anonymous said...

Canadians are so brave! I can't even begin to imagine what -15 is like. It's sunny and +32 here today. Hot enough to make your average citizen of Montreal melt I suggest.

Anonymous said...

How could I have lived this long without knowing about Camera Obscura? Maybe I'm just not adorable and clean-cut enough :) Thanks for the links, I needed something new to listen to.

velogirl said...

I am going tomorrow night in Toronto!
Wheeee!!

Anonymous said...

i finally found a copy of their latest two days ago / just imported it onto the ipod last night! :) sounds like a great show...

it's only 0 here so no long johns for me yet! :)

Jennifer said...

I saw them last night. Traceyanne said that Lloyd Cole sent her roses when he heard the song.

And she did that paul simon bit last night too. I grinned like an idiot!

J.

Anonymous said...

awesome. we're going to see them on the 13th. your report only makes me more excited!

Twiss And Weber said...

I played shinny instead of seeing them. I'm glad you had a good time!

Anonymous said...

I'm officially jealous. I wish they would come to Newfoundland! But hardly any really cool bands do. Sigh...