Neko Case Concert @ DB Garden & Matsuhisa With J & M 20Jun23

What a great evening in Denver with Jim & Mary we had. First the weather finally changed to spectacular for the Neko Case (& Norah O'Connor) concert at the Denver Botanical Gardens. We still grabbed seats in the shade in front of the stage with 360° sound. We weren't there for doors but there was a huge queue anyway and scored descent oblique viewing/listening. J&M brought a nice Napa cab and tasty nosh we enjoyed while there. First up was Norah playing solo; she's an accomplished alt country singer/songrwriter from the same Bloodshot label as Neko. Her voice was awesome but we'd have hoped for more dBs back in the cheap seats. Nonetheless, her stuff was keen and upon a Internet dive we found her extensive set of solo & collaborative projects, including the Decemberists, The Flat Five, The Blacks, Kelly Hogan and more ~ including backing vocals for Neko, so we'd see her later too.

Neko Case and band were excellent and the sound guy had graced us with a better mix with forward vocals from Neko. I've really liked her for a long time solo and with the New Pornographers and this concert showed again what a fine contralto voice she has. Too we commented often as to her penchant to write about stuff from the natural world ~ 'this tornado loves you;" "I wish I was the moon;" "tigers have spoken;" "never turn your back on mother earth;" "but you're still surprised when I eat ya'." And there was much more... very good concert featuring an accompanist off stage in the grass, revival of the tenor guitar by Neko, opening with a tiny accordion, and an appreciative crowd.

We headed over to Matsuhisa after the concert and enjoyed a killer set of sashimi & sushi dishes accompanied by a tasty floral cold Junmai sake. There are 3 of these in CO and the Denver spot is highly recommended ~ these are all part of the Nobu restaurants. We were fortunate to score a an evening @ J&M's downtown residence ~ I snapped a pan of 6 cranes building like mad while there; in case you thought Denver might be slowing down. It was a total blast for 12 hrs ~ thanks guys!