From under a brooding, vermilion-red show light, the sound of a weathered mind filled up the delicate wood grains of St. Matthew’s Church. Timber Timbre, more intimately known as Taylor Kirk, projected his unique blend of haunting and laboured folk onto the fair weather watchers of the Halifax Pop Explosion. Aided by the haunting violin of Mika Posen and the subtle yet captivating lap steel of Simon Tottier, Kirk crafted frail soundscapes with the stinging bite of a wounded and weary soul. Between the jarring, almost overwhelmingly emotional Tom Waits meets Bob Dylan meets Devandra Banhart musing and jagged bursts of swamp-blues Fender Telecaster, the crowd’s roaring applause cascaded through the hall only to become dead silent at the hint of another song. Well-behaved and respectful, the crowd hung on every moment of Kirk’s performance. Waiting anxiously as songs wound down, they wondered whether to clap or remain sitting in awe.
Though throwing a few classics and fan favorites to the audience, Kirk relied heavily on the sounds of his recent self-titled album. Armed with sparse instrumentation, the church was filled to the brim with eerie, atmospheric blues and folk driven by a piercing and homely bass drum played by Kirk himself. In songs like Demon Host, the sense that you were experiencing this ethereally haunting music in a church became increasingly apparent and quickly sent shivers down your spine. Playing to the ambiance and his surroundings, midway through the set the Ontario native, aided by a looping pedal, created a cacophony of fluttering bird calls and whistles to back his already sonically rich performance. Though he was devilishly silent, almost withdrawn, the audience was appreciative and captivated by the immense conviction that Timber Timbre exuded.
Quietly shuffling offstage, Kirk chivalrously made way for headliner Jenn Grant. While certainly lightening the mood and engaging the audience with some charming stories and quirky banter (not to mention her lighthearted repertoire of bouncy pop-folk), Grant failed to deliver with the same urgency and emotion that Kirk seemed to leak like a sieve. One might wonder if the venue had gotten its wires crossed on the performance order, for although the crowd were all ears to songs like “Blue Mountains” and her much adored hit “Dreamer,” it seemed the fiery conviction had been snuffed out. Grant’s performance – while beautiful in its own right – seemed reduced to a subdued lull after the seething sounds of Timber Timbre.
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