National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Rocco Landesman probably isn’t the first person who comes to mind when a musician playing the Black Cat announces she has a special guest. But then again, Neko Case is anything but usual. (Landesman and Case, who promotes literacy awareness, repped the D.C. chapter of 826 National, a literacy non-profit.) The show itself was stunning. Armed with a full band that also included a flat pedal steel and stand-up bass, Case and her amazing voice wound the audience through her catalog, a middle cyclone that pulled a willing audience into its center.
Openers Y La Bamba were an amazing find. Their blend of indie rock with traditional Mexican folk was creative and uplifting.
Neko Case
(Case with Landesman)
(More photos from both sets can be found here.)