Robert and I had a fabulous Friday night at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, where we saw musical performances by artists Keren Ann and Juana Molina. napkinshoe joined us along with my brother Dave and our dear friends Stephanie and Eric.

The show was brilliant. While we had originally gone for Keren Ann, we stayed and fell in love with Argentinian musician Juana Molina. We knew a little about her but had never heard her before and didn't know what to expect. When she first clumped out on the stage grumbling as she pushed a speaker into place, we assumed she was some cranky museum employee. As we realized she was the artist, we exchanged worried glances...oh no...angry, bitter female artist! She was also oddly dressed like some Bad Seed-ish little girl or Emily the Strange, with bony arms poking from a shapeless, sexless shift dress and sticklike legs ending in bulbous toed Mary Janes. She sighed and grimaced as she pushed some buttons on her synthesizers (more alarms going off as we realized there was no band...she was the band!) as if it were the greatest inconvenience. At first it seemed like she was just making some adjustments and testing things out, but suddenly we realized that she was setting up these musical loops, layering them over each other, building a piece that grew more and more complex in texture. And when she grabbed her guitar and finally started playing it and singing, we were floored. She was a kickass musician. She was powerful. We were captivated.  

Following the show, it was good to catch up over a drink with Stef and Eric, and give Eric some belated birthday presents. Our friend Christine met us over at Brasserie Jo and brought her new boyfriend along for us to meet (and inspect)...he's awesome!

It's nice when you have a perfect evening...the night was warm and breezy, we heard good music, we saw good friends, and we got great parking spaces! Some nights it just all comes together.