Live Report: Glen Hansard in Berlin, 13/12/2012
Both with his band, The Frames, his project The Swell Season or solo, he’s like an hurricane, on the stage. Even if he performs in a church: in this case the Apostel Paulus Kirche in Berlin. As soon as you get in, you realize this is the perfect place for him, with its massive and gothic style. At 9 pm, when the red-haired irish takes the stage, the church is full of people. He’s accompanied by his old musician mates - the Frames in disguise. They begin with 4 songs off of Glen’s solo record, “Rythm and repose”, bu the temperature heathens with the crescendo of “When your mind's made up” - the audience responds warmly and Glen loosens up. The setlist goes on picking from all of his vast repertoir and musical outfits. As usual, he sings covers too: one of the evening’s most intense moments is a furios rendition of Van Morrison’s “Astral weeks” for voice and guitar. He could play a full concert this way, without being boring for a single moment.
As the show goes on, the dubliner becomes more of a storyteller, explaining the creative process behind the songs, before ending the first part of the set with a funky cover of Marvin Gaye’s “Baby don't you do it”.
After the break the audience is treated with a surprise: fellow dubliner Lisa Hannigan takes the stage for a couple of songs, including “Falling slowly” -the Academy Awards winning song Hansard used to sing with his partner in The Swell Season Marketa Irglova. He makes people literally cry. He gets a standing ovation and then closes the show with "Fitzcarraldo"
After such a show, you still feel warmed up even outside, in a freezing Berlin. If you felt this way every time you went to a church, every mass would be a sold-out. Thanks, Glen.