It took nerve. And a lot of talent. Lucky for the audience, Amanda Palmer’s got plenty of both.
The Boston Pops’ EdgeFest got a little edgier last night as Keith Lockhart’s summertime band got behind the Dresden Dolls vocalist, who blew the roof off Symphony Hall with a triumphant set that showcased the new, the old and the completely unexpected.
Making a grand entrance from a side door spiced things up before she even opened her mouth. Moving up the aisle as she sang the Dolls’ “Missed Me,” the tune’s old-world Romanian feel accented by tambourine and fiddle.
Palmer radiated confidence, dressed in an elegant goth ensemble that included a fantastic lavender corset and one of her trademark ruffled dresses (all train, not much in front). And her flexible vocals indicated she’s fully recovered from the vocal node surgery that temporarily silenced her a few months ago.
“This is awesome,” Palmer enthused before launching into “Astronaut” at the piano, the first of a handful of new songs from her forthcoming solo CD, “Who Killed Amanda Palmer?,” due in September.
Of the newer selections, “Point of It All” worked exceptionally well, and the orchestra’s warm, melancholic swells kept Palmer’s piano and vocal anchored.
For “Had to Drive,” she was joined by members of the Tanglewood Festival Chorus (including her father), and the Columbine-inspired “Strength Through Music” found her hitting emotional and vocal highs as a procession of white-faced ghosts entered the hall, eventually falling to the floor in slow motion.
She filled out the set with random choices. Ben Folds’ “Brick” provided the rare opportunity to hear Palmer sing something with an obvious pop hook; Folds, by the way, produced the upcoming CD.
And “Coin Operated Boy” featured an amusing standoff with Lockhart that momentarily landed Palmer in the conductor’s spot, while Dresden Dolls partner Brian Viglione turned up in top hat and tails for “What A Wonderful World.”
Throughout, Palmer and the Pops managed to complement each other and remain respectful of one another’s musical boundaries. And to have done it with a mix of mostly new material and first-run covers attests to Palmer’s command as a performer - not that we didn’t think she had it in her.
