Vashti live review on Pitchfork

Live: Vashti Bunyan / Brightblack Morning Light
The Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: 7 September 2006
Live Review by Jonathan Zwickel

... Settling into a more frank, charming older-aunt mode was Vashti Bunyan, eyes sparkling and pert, speaking voice firm and gentle like your junior high art teacher. "I can't believe I'm here," she told the crowd, who was clearly beyond thrilled that she was. Sitting amidst a young, talented, five-piece string band, Bunyan exuded a true sense of gratitude before she sang a single note. But once she began by introducing "Hidden", an immediate, comfortable intimacy arose, her songs leading down the halls of her past to illuminate memories framed in this simple, gorgeous, eloquent music. Bunyan's albums-- all anyone was familiar with-- are delicate and soothing. At this show, backed by acoustic guitar, violin, cello, banjo, and alternating flute, accordion, piano, and kalimba, she seemed far more robust and substantial, her compositions far more alive. And her voice still sounds like a dream.

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