Concert Review: Lady Lamb IS A Tender Warrior
I reviewed Lady Lamb’s Tender Warriors Club, and not many artists’ performance can represent their album title and turn it into a symbol. At Knitting Factory, Lady Lamb made the crowd apart of her club. She convinced us all that Tender Warriors are needed more than ever, in the world, because to wear your heart on your sleeve is the strongest thing you can do. When you show your light it is a guarantee that some will want to dim it, but the crowd at Knitting Factory showed Lady Lamb, and myself, that, when you shine, someone will want to shine with you, as well.
Lady Lamb is singular on the stage. She plays her banjo/guitar and sings her tunes like a young woman confronting/conversing with God, which amps up the folk aspect of her music. After all, the folk genre is about life’s spiritual challenges as told through mystifying tales. Hence, there is boldness and intimacy to her performance style that makes her appear like a person trying to count her sins as well as her joys. Tender Warriors Club has been on of my favorite albums of the year because of how laced it is with deep thoughts. It is as if Lady Lamb went into the corners of her imagination to pick up the scraps of emotions/visions she thought no one would see for their gold, but they did, at least in Knitting Factory. Still, what drew me to her performance was the fact that I could not describe it as anything but intelligent. I have never, once, used “intelligent” as a descriptive word for a performer, but the smartest thing both a human being and artist can do is be truthful; Lady Lamb is truthful. Her words are purely connected to her own mind and heart, but when you see that hers are not just any lyrics arrangements but intellectual ones; you will use intelligent to describe her, as well.
