Dan Whitehouse commented about how we all have different gig journeys and thanked those checking him out during this hometown show. Gig journeys are a very personal pursuit and it is intriguing to see how they evolve especially the ports that they call at. There was something quite cyclical and evolutionary about making the decision to check in with an artist nestling on my periphery for almost a near decade. The vow made to follow up on a singer-songwriter who is more Black Country than Brummie for those of a local nature was made after an impressive set at Beardy Folk Festival in June and duly kept a month later as the heatwave slowly subsided.
Another in-joke quip about being on call to open Glee Club gigs links in to the evening when I was first acquainted with the music of Dan Whitehouse. It was this very venue ten years ago when from a hazy memory he opened for Canadian country superstar Terri Clark on her surprise visit to Birmingham. There would have been no real contest that evening, but a decade on it was an honour to delve first time into a headline show rather than the fleeting glimpses over the years mainly opening for others.
There was a switch in rooms from 2012 as the modest and more intimate studio proved the ideal space for the next phase of Dan Whitehouse's artistic unleashing. The Glass Age is born in several venues across the UK this summer and it is certainly panning out to be one of the year's more intriguing releases. While folk in some form will always be at the heart of Dan Whitehouse's music, this is very much folk for the digital world.
His renaissance for me began during lockdown with a beguiling virtual performance on the twice weekly Green Note stream. At the time Dan was marooned in Japan and his set coincided with the most beautiful backdrop of the rising sun in its most literal state. It was during this enforced stay that nurtured the new record which finally saw the light of day on July 22nd. This brings us right up to date with the entirety of THE GLASS AGE being the centrepiece of this and other shows on the album launch tour.
At Beardy Folk, Dan teamed up with percussionist Jack Sadler. For this Glee Club show (and no doubt the others on the tour), the set up was enhanced to a trio with Rob Lindop on keys. He was introduced as injecting some soul in the digital art and this proved the case during the hour and a quarter on stage.
Dan further joked that The Glass Age was roughly the same length as Nashville Skyline. Thus leaving time for the show to amble into alternative territories of localised folk and 'the greatest hits'. Irony is alive and kicking at the grass roots. All three strands to the set came across exceedingly well. For the new material, Dan drew on the expressive side to his vocals (the electric guitar featured in the second part) leaving the pulsating beat of Jack and delicate keys of Rob to generate the soundtrack, one conducive to the album theme of exploring the thin line between digital and the emotional life. All seven tracks were meticulously introduced and presented. From first listen, the stories to 'The Tide' and 'Thin Blue Line' resonated the strongest, while the musical peaks were 'Rainbows Never End' closely followed by 'New Love'. Now the album is out on the supportive Bandcamp platform, 'try before you buy' has never been so accessible.
Sandwiched between the intensity of The Glass Age and the frivolity of the singalong finale were a couple of songs to surface from the Voices From the Cones project where Dan has collaborated with other strands of performing art to celebrate the glassmaking heritage of the Black Country. 'Free Beer' is a stunning folk song brought to extra life if you are of a certain vintage to have enjoyed pints in the Fish and Little Pig. Mind you free beer wasn't on the menu for us mortals from distinct memory. A live performance of Voices From the Cones is next up on the 2022 gig journey with a multi media show in Stourbridge later this summer.
Dan Whitehouse is known as a champion of other developing artists. Recollection is of seeing him play with Danielle Cawdell in Birmingham a couple of years ago. Several artists have been invited to open shows on the current tour with Caitlin LM accepting the invitation to play the Birmingham gathering. She was certainly an absorbing performer digging deep into the canyons of her heart and soul to deliver an array of powerful songs. The electronic backdrop was a little different to the more organic sounds from the follow on trio, but on an evening of pushing boundaries, open minds were rewarded.
Rewarding has definitely been the operative word during this 2022 connection with the music of Dan Whitehouse. Phase1: Beardy Folk, an enlightening experience; phase 2: The Glass Age live, an enthralling engagement; phase 3; The Glass Age record lined up for deep exploration; phase 4: set to be the intriguing Voices From the Cones.
Gig journeys are weird and wonderful experiences. You never know where they lead. Who would have thought that the brash upfront country of Terri Clark would evolve into the folk digital expressions of deep inner pondering. This personal gig journey continues to meander and the 2022 port of call in the shape of Dan Whitehouse has been a fulfilling pit stop.
