By Matt Collette
When most people get on stage and sing along to pre-recorded music, expectations are low. But when Khaela Maricich, who performs as The Blow, took the stage at the Remis Auditorium at the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) Oct. 6, audiences heard something remarkably pleasing.
The Blow played to a sold-out crowd at the MFA’s 400-seat venue. Maricich took the stage alone after an opening performance by indie pop band Saturday Looks Good to Me.
Most of the audience remained seated throughout the show, something Daniel Hirsch, the museum’s concert program manager, said was because it was in “a venue different from the standard club atmosphere.”
“[Remis Auditorium] offers a really intimate connection to the performers, with no distractions,” Hirsch said. “Khaela was right there, and the audience was able to really hear the words [and] experience the show.”
The Blow formed in 2004 as a collaboration between Maricich, who wrote the lyrics and melodies to the songs, and Jona Bechtolt, who composed the band’s beats and music. Bechtolt left the duo in 2006, but that hasn’t stopped Maricich from performing. She has continued to perform as The Blow since then, though her stop at the MFA was at the tail end of her tour. She will focus on other projects in the future.
“This is the last tour I’m doing with these songs that I made with Jona Bechtolt. My mom’s really upset about it – she actually happens to be here tonight,” Maricich said. “She likes to get to watch me on YouTube. She’s like ‘I’m not going to have any more videos to watch of you,’ and I say, ‘Well you’ll see me more in person.'”
This change in focus is nothing new for Maricich, who has performed solo under her own name as well as under names like Get the Hell Out of the Way of the Volcano and Get the Hell Out of the Way of the Wave.
A large part of Maricich’s show, which was just as much performance art as it was a standard concert, were monologues on songwriting that were sprinkled between songs. Each song was paired with what have become signature dance moves for The Blow.
Much of the dialogue between songs focused on what makes a good pop song. Maricich said a good pop song has to be sung about something the singer doesn’t have and probably never will. She compared Minnie Riperton’s 1975 hit “Lovin’ You (Is Easy ‘Cause You’re Beautiful)” to James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain,” a song he allegedly wrote after his fianc’eacute;e died in a plane crash.
“I just don’t think [writing about something you already have] is as rich a songwriting vein as when you’re writing about something you can’t have, and the song is you getting there,” Maricich said.
It was this reason that so many of her songs, Maricich said, were about her own failed relationships, or ones that just never materialized.
The show flowed with Maricich’s stories. When one heavier sounding song came next in her set list, she asked her audio engineer Melissa to change it for her.
“I’m just not really in the mood for that song,” Maricich said. “See the thing of this is, this tour is my own private karaoke tour. I don’t have to pay, I don’t have to wait in line, I don’t have to wait for other people to sing other songs I don’t want to hear just so I can get up and sing my songs.”
The crowd rose to their feet during the encore when Maricich performed “Fists Up.” She spoke about how much more powerful an audience feels in a venue where they don’t have to stand, but do so anyways.
“It’s great that you guys are standing for me right now, you don’t have to, but it really means a lot that you do,” Maricich said. “So I’m going to do one more song, and you can stand or sit or do whatever you want to do.”
