Brendan Benson – Ted Mills

Brendan Benson of Raconteurs fame put on a blistering show at the Velvet Jones on Friday night. CARA ROBBINS/BROOKS INSTITUTE — Brendan Benson of Raconteurs fame put on a blistering show at the Velvet Jones on Friday night.
CARA ROBBINS/BROOKS INSTITUTE

Take no prisoners, or in a rush to get back to the tour bus? Brendan Benson’s blistering show at the Velvet Jones on Friday night raised just those sorts of questions. How else to interpret this piledriver set, a dozen or so singalong would-be-hits with hardly a breath between, let alone a hello howdyado? Leav ’em stunned, seems to be Benson’s motto.

On his latest record, Mr. Benson wraps himself in all sorts of lush arrangements, with a wide palette of instruments at his disposal. Live, with Mr. Benson backed up by three smokin’ hot musicians, the songs get returned to their post-punk roots, less Wings and more This Year’s Model.

Fans of power pop have been watching Brendan Benson’s career since he arrived with a perfect gem of a debut in 1996 with “One Mississippi.” In a perfect world, fans say, Benson would have had a string of pop hits and by now taken his seat as the new Paul McCartney. After his disillusionment with his major label he continued to put out albums, but with a lower profile. It was his partnership with friend Jack White in The Raconteurs that brought Benson back to the national stage. And now he has returned with one of his strongest solo albums, “My Old, Familiar Friend,” packed with melodic invention, sing-along choruses, clever songs structures and a retro-’70s feel from producer Gil Norton that nods to Wings, ELO, and Todd Rundgren.

Tag: Brendan Benson

This Benson doesn’t hedge : Brendan Benson, part of the raucous group The Raconteurs with Jack White, delivered clean-burning power pop at Velvet Jones on Friday

Benson’s Back — Power popster Brendan Benson, who gigs at Velvet Jones tonight, has returned to solo work since a stint with The Raconteurs