Amanda Fucking Palmer

I first saw Amanda Palmer as she sang in The Dresden Dolls way back in May 2005 as a fly-by-night trip from Greensboro to Chicago. They opened up for Nine Inch Nails on an intimate club/theater tour. It was awesome! And just one of those crazy "fly to a different city just to see a band" experiences that leaves a permanent mark. I found The Dresden Dolls (and Amanda especially) to be intoxicating.

Last November, I caught Amanda in Asheville for another quick and harried concert. Work until 4pm, drive the 2 1/2 hours to Asheville, see the show, then drive the 2 1/2 hours back home. Still, so incredible in the cozy venue of the Orange Peel.

My most recent Amanda sighting occurred last night at The Arts Center in Carrboro, NC on the Chapel Hill city line. This concert took the cake. Leaving NIN out of the equation, this Amanda Palmer experience blew that one away. Easily.

Let's rewind a bit. UNC was playing a basketball game to make it to the Final Four at 5:00pm. The concert was merely a 1/2 mile away from Carolina Brewery in Chapel Hill. Sooooo....a drive for dinner and brews at Carolina Brewery while watching UNC stomp Oklahoma on the TV's. A fun time to be in the middle of so much "Carolina blue" watching the game...while I stick out with my black 2008 Amanda Palmer tour t-shirt. Funny.

The game is over and I walk to the Arts Center. A tiny little spot. So intimate and cozy. Close to the stage. The audience members are right on top of one another, and the stage is virtually reachable with the slightest reach of your arm. A lot of banter, a lot of give and take, a lot of audience participation. This was the final night of her lengthy tour since August, and it was bittersweet: she wanted to be done with such a long tour, yet did not want the limelight to extinguish just yet. It made for a very introspective and personal show. It. Was. Awesome.

Afterward, she stated she would sign items for fans once she emerged from backstage. The crowd waited. And waited. Finally we were all rewarded with an opportunity to meet Amanda. And I do mean ALL of us. She patiently spoke with whomever wanted to wait. She did not rush anyone along. She did not act like a celebrity prima donna. We were not wasting her time.

It came time for me. I bought a poster. My heartbeat began to flutter. I came up to her and asked her to sign my poster. It began easy enough...

Can you make it out to Christopher?
- Spelled the normal way?
Yes the normal way.
- I hope you enjoyed the show.
I did. I oh so much did.

And then our eyes met and apparently the muse spoke within me and I began celebrating her music and her style and that her songs are truly wonderful and they strike a chord within my heart. I then tell her, "The best adjective I can describe you when I hear your voice is 'enchanting'."

Her eyes well up with tears. She wraps her arms around my neck. And then she plants one upon my lips. No quick peck and be gone. Nice, soft, and slow. My mind immediately is dazed and I am in a fog.

Amanda Palmer just kissed me.

I don't remember much for the immediate time thereafter. I frankly was spellbound. Did a rock star just plant one on me? Wow. We then took a photo:



This was awesome.

No one ever seems to know what I'm talking about when I profess my love for her and her music. Who? Amanda Who? The Dresden Who? Well, as a public service and as an informational post, here is an array of various song styles and tempos and volumes that can give you a snippet of the reasons of my adoration for her.

First, some Dresden Dolls videos:



And now, some Amanda Palmer solo videos:



Here are two dark ones (as in visible light, not necessarily due to subject matter) that I took personally from my seat Sunday night:



And finally the one I most rock out to and dance around and bop my head:



And in case by some strange chance you missed it earlier:

Wow.