Concert Review: Michael Hurley and Bonnie “Prince” Billy at the Aladdin Theater

Original image by There Stands the Glass.

I was momentarily startled when I spotted Will Oldham, aka Bonnie "Prince" Billy, at the 2018 edition of the Cropped Out festival.  The singer-songwriter wasn’t on the bill of the sorely missed Louisville festival, but he took in a magical set by Michael Hurley on the bank of the Ohio River.

Five years later, I was once again in the presence of both men at Portland’s Aladdin Theater on Monday, May 15.  I seemed to enjoy Hurley’s opening set more than any of the other 500 people in the audience.

My loud guffaws during the wildly tasteless "Ms. Petty Blues" elicited stares.  A subtle environmental protest song caused tears to well in my eyes.  Allusions to back doors and fresh pies were frequent.

Hurley’s wry humor invoked Furry Lewis while his devil-may-care nature caused him to resemble Mississippi John Hurt.  In spite of the slightly intrusive and entirely unnecessary accompaniment of a second musician, Hurley, 81, is a dynamic force in peak form.  I was bowled over.

Oldham made a gracious concession during his headlining performance: “The elephant in the room is Michael Hurley.”  It takes nothing away from Oldham to acknowledge that Hurley owned the evening.

Album Review: Bill Callahan and Bonnie “Prince” Billy- Blind Date Party

Freak-folk landed between opera and trap-latino in the personalized annual “top genres” notification Spotify sent me four weeks ago.  I certainly listened to gobs of Richard Wagner and Bad Bunny, but I don’t recall spending much time singing along with folk outsiders like Bill Callahan and Bonnie “Prince” Billy during the first 11 months of 2021.  

Things have changed.  Released December 10, Blind Date Party, a 90-minute compilation of covers overseen by the two Bills, is in heavy rotation at There Stands the Glass headquarters.  Abetted by an impressive slate of like-minded peers, the freak-folk luminaries reinterpret compositions by artists ranging from Billie Eilish (a loopy dressing-down of “Wish You Were Gay”) to Jerry Jeff Walker (an elegiac version of “I Love You”).

I miss my father, but I’m relieved he’s not around to hear the hilarious desecration of “O.D.’d in Denver,” one of his favorite Bocephus bangers. Alastair Roberts’ contributions make an interpretation of Dave Rich’s gospel song "I've Made Up My Mind" my favorite track. The bots at Spotify got it right after all.