JENNY LEWIS

Jenny Lewis may not have drawn the biggest crowd in the Red Marquee this weekend, but she certainly had one of the loudest. Her fans are a vocal bunch, and the hooting and applause with each song just got louder and more impassioned as the set went on. Between songs, she encouraged them with her American girl down-home sass. Her stage banter often began with the address, “Alright dudes….” Not many performers can do that. But then again, not many female country singers sing achy-breaky-heart songs about dropping acid.

For the hour-long set, Lewis was backed up by a band of five members, including two guitarists. She also strummed a few of her own, both electric and acoustic, plowing through tunes including (“an old one”) “Bad News”, (“a new one”) “Girl on Girl” and (a hit) “She’s Not Me”.

For the final number, she had the entire band put down their instruments and gather around a single microphone, like they were the Carter Family or something. As they hummed and sang the harmony, she picked up an acoustic guitar and accompanied herself on “Acid Tongue”, one of the most personal statements in her repertoire, or perhaps it’s just a typical American confessional. When it was over, they waved and walked off stage. It was a quiet number, but the crowd made all the noise for them.