Mark Kozelek Live At The Union Chapel

A solitary guitar rests on stage, as an anticipating crowd fill the pews of the Union Chapel. Some audience members’ split from their friends to acquire the few remaining individual spaces in the main section of the chapel while others ascend to the first floor accepting a different perspective for the night…

A man selling merchandise at the back of the chapel comments on the ‘solo nature’ of the night, for it isn’t just the lonely guitar on stage that encompasses the one man act that is to follow. We learn that this act is also his own tour manager, and that on this night – his only live performance in the UK this year – that Mark Kozelek will soon play to the crowd on his lonesome.

Casting a calm, and far from introvert appearance, it becomes clear that the necessity for such an individual performance is due to the intimacy of the music that will follow. Focussing predominantly on new material from the Sun Kil Moon record ‘Admiral Fell Promises,’ the quality of the chapel’s acoustics are evident as the concert is opened with ‘Alesund’ that perfectly summarises the work of the artist at hand. The music is the epitome of the singer songwriter as the intricate, classical and latin influenced playing is then overlaid with lyrics that are poetic in their construction. As with each of the proceeding tracks, the song is built on several long verses, which eventually give way to elaborate string play.

As each track concludes, and the audience take time to acknowledge the depth of the artistry at hand, the performer takes a towel to his plucking hand which one presumes is to either dry the moistness of it or to soothe the coarseness that such playing provides. We hear songs such as ‘Half Moon Bay,’ ‘Third and Seneca’ from the new album, while tracks like ‘Moorsetown’ remind us of the vast catalogue of previous hits. With each song a fresh tuning of the guitar is required, and light banter is conducted between the performer and his audience during these intervals.

There can be no denying the vastness of each song, however such is the detailed composition that even in its beauty the music can be overwhelming. It took nearly two years to fully appreciate the previous Sun Kil Moon record ‘April’ and at times the thought of investing equal time in this new work is daunting. However, like the companionless nature of the man on stage, it is the thought of sharing this individuality and personal consumption that brings a fine evening to a close and opens a long path ahead to the appreciation of masterful musicianship. – Review by Josh Atkin for Fluid Radio

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