I can commiserate with the folks over at the Merc about feeling a little last minute. But though I hate to throw a wrench into your already busy night the tender-voiced Kaia Wilson, of the legendary dyke punk band Team Dresch will perform tonight at Backspace (115 NW 5th Ave) in celebration of her latest release Godmakesmonkeys.
Kaia’s signature sweet breathiness remains a fixture on Godmakesmonkeys, but the very beginnings of melancholy start to really poke their heads through in a new way. Though the album is largely about an ex-girlfriend and the vulnerability, joy, and confusion that come with that, it reveals that love may be a much more complex than “many splendored” thing. With bright jingles from xylaphones juxtaposed with bittersweet vocal sounds and the occasional minor key, Kaia puts you through the paces of love and art in a way that is as subtle as it can be intense.
The more recent deaths of Kaia’s beloved pets as well as another breakup are likely to color the next album in a dark cloak, and indeed that is why the celebration of Godmakesmonkeys has taken several months to come about.
Wilson appears tonight with Marci Martinez, with whom she has worked on many projects including Team Dresch, and guest Paradise Island’s Jenny Hoysten. Next it’s off on a cross-country tour with lesbian icon Amy Ray. As the lead guitarist, a role Wilson is not used to playing, Kaia will will bring back a sensiblity to her solo work that can only serve to enhance the intense sadness. But before that LP makes its way into the world this release party is a chance to revel in the calm before the storm and enjoy the new music of Kaia Wilson before she is whisked away to other cities.
