The singer-songwriter left us with a new appreciation for the instrument on her ‘Not For Lack of Clarinets’ tour.
Photo: Charlotte Hadden
English singer-songwriter dodie recently released the deluxe edition of her second album Not For Lack Of Trying. Alongside this release, dodie set off on the Not For Lack of Clarinets tour, which promises an intimate reimagining of the album with every song re-scored to be played by two clarinets.
As a fan of the album, and having seen dodie perform it on tour last November at her Roundhouse show with a full band, I was curious to see what new dimensions this re-scoring might reveal. Now, having seen the show at Hackney’s EartH, I can confirm it not only gave me a new appreciation for the album but also for the woodwind instrument.
The night opened with one of the clarinet players in question and singer-songwriter, Felicity Henry. Felicity sat with a guitar centre stage, lit by a singular spotlight. She has a stunning voice, particularly when she dips into her lower register. She is also clearly a talented musician, but looks to still be building her confidence on stage as a solo artist.
It probably didn’t help that, despite the venue accommodating a fair few people, the crowd was at times eerily quiet. During this set, it was hard to gauge the audience reaction until Felicity announced it would be her last song and the crowd collectively “aww’d” in unison.
As for her songs, they were really pretty but left little impression on my memory. The most compelling was We All Do, an unreleased track that closed the set with off-kilter chords, creating an interesting musical tension. As it’s her newest, I think this points towards the potential for growth into a compelling solo act.
The crowd seemed to come alive as dodie took the stage with Felicity and bass clarinet player Hannah Shilvock. The set was mostly arranged in album order so, after a quick clarinet intro, we kicked off with I’M FINE!, which gained a rich texture in the new arrangement. This performance instantly sold me on the concept.
However, the new rendition of Smart Girl revealed one of the biggest flaws and strengths of this show. dodie herself acknowledged ahead of this one that a challenge with clarinets is that they get squeaky when they get loud. This poses a slight problem, as the best part of Smart Girl is its sudden “wall of sound” effect. With that disclaimer in mind, I still enjoyed myself. Although I do prefer the full band version of Smart Girl, as the crescendos don’t quite reach the same highs with two clarinets and a guitar. Instead, what they do is accentuate the cheekier side to dodie’s writing.
dodie herself mentioned that her best friend and filmmaker, Sammy Paul, said: “The thing about the clarinets is it makes your funny songs sound funnier.” And I completely agree. They act as a sort of live studio audience, playfully punctuating every punchline. This is a huge credit to the characterful arrangements throughout the show, helping you find new tonal layers to the album.
The playful energy continued with Darling, Angel, Baby, dodie’s unconventional love song dedicated to her cat, which culminates in a playful bridge about her cat’s love of edamame. I was pleasantly surprised to see the crowd boogieing along despite the sit-down-only setup of the venue.
Humour wasn’t the only thing accentuated by these new arrangements. The clarinets gave an aptly ominous undertone to Hold Fire, and the trills of Now brought to light the hopeful tone of the song.
dodie also takes much influence from musical theatre and likes to write big swooping melodies that lend themselves well to setup, as evidenced in The List, which felt delightfully wistful and bittersweet live as dodie swapped her guitar for the keys. The vulnerable chorus in dodie’s whispered higher register stirred something deep within me. I clearly wasn’t the only one, as the applause after this one was particularly loud.
Her sincere songs really shine here. The End, a heartbreaking song about confronting a tumultuous breakup, sees dodie playing question and answer with the clarinets. They emphasise dodie’s every uncertainty and anxiety to tremendous effect.
After a stunning performance of the title track Not For Lack Of Trying, we took a quick detour through dodie’s back catalogue as the clarinet players took a break. For this section, dodie was particularly keen for the audience to sing along. I don’t know what is in the air with dodie’s fanbase, but this is a musically gifted bunch from the sounds of how well they harmonised along to her through She, When and Guiltless. I felt actual chills as people sang along in the round to Guiltless.
The clarinets made their grand return for The Answer, which had a particularly fun part for the bass clarinet. dodie also brought out maracas, and the crowd clapped along to the joyous performance.
These shows and the album reimagining were clearly a passion project for dodie, and the enthusiasm she has while playing these songs on stage gave the crowd something very palpable to feed off. In her own words, “Big fan of the clarinets if you didn’t know, and by the end of the show I hope you will be too.” If that was the mission statement for this tour, then I would say dodie certainly accomplished her goal.
Setlist:
I’M FINE!
Smart Girl
Darling, Angel, Baby
Hold Fire
Tall Kids
I Feel Bad for You, Dave
Now
The List
Different
The End
The Answer
She
Guiltless
When
Not For Lack Of Trying
Maybe, Finally