For a frontman, Mark Linkous appears remarkably shy. Hiding beneath the brim of his baseball cap, the brains behind Sparklehorse seems afraid of exposing himself before the crowd. Yet somehow the reticent singer manages to reach out to every spectator with his fragile voice and delicate, country-tinged songs.
It helps that the audience is on his side. You realise that a performance as intimate and subtle as this depends upon the goodwill of the throng packed into the tiny venue. A single heckle would destroy the mood; anything less than total concentration and the atmosphere would be poisoned. But tonight the tone is reverent. Linkous knows all eyes and ears are upon him.
Perhaps it's because of this weight of expectation that he seems ever so slightly awkward. The singer perches on his stool and avoids all eye contact as violins, organ and even glockenspiel gently carry his heartfelt, if faltering vocals. Microphone effects are employed to distort his voice and, you sense, further conceal the real Linkous. Even during the faster, electric guitar-led songs, he turns his back during solos.
But that's not to say that Linkous is in any way remote from the crowd. Rather, his cautious delivery comes from the genuine reserve that comes with intimacy. Carefully picking out the nuances of his elegantly crafted, finely textured melodies, he seems hesitant because he wants to be honest. Like fellow Americans Will Oldham and Bill Callahan, Linkous realises that country music's greatest strength is a capacity to be both emotional and reserved at once. What he takes from the form is this economy of expression. The band's performance is restrained, the heartfelt lyrics are masked by a jokey surrealism.
Of course, sometimes this exactitude goes too far. When Linkous storms off until a barely noticeable hum of feedback is removed, you realise how much of a hindrance over-sensitivity can be. Only the audience's unnatural patience ensures the rest of the set isn't derailed. Without so generous and appreciative an audience there's no way Linkous could carry off his demure performance.
