Why would a swede move to Melbourne? Because of the fresh avocados? Why does everything get so complicated when you get older? Is a broken heart more important than the result of an election? And did Nina’s dad ever understand that she was a lesbian? These are some of the important questions that you need to ask, if you want to know what it’s like to be Jens Lekman.To these thoughts, add some well-crafted pop melodies, some grandiose arrangements, including violin, accordion and saxophone, and loads of naive, Swedish charm, and you have a completely sold out Lido on a Wednesday night.
Storytelling is the key word. When Jens Lekman is on a stage, to him I listen more attentively than compared to any other songwriter, just to catch the end of his tales. Especially when he played ”A Postcard to Nina”, the witty story about Nina, who had a girlfriend, but who introduced Jens Lekman as her fiance to her dad. It was the first encore, and it took him about fifteen minutes to get through it, because he wanted to tell the whole story. And it was brilliant.
The first half of the concert was mostly new material, although we did get ”The Opposite of Hallelujah”. The new stuff was still very much Jens Lekman, and the audience was dedicated enough, but whenever he played an old and better known song, the cheers just wouldn’t stop. There was an almost reverent silence during the ballad ”And I Remember Every Kiss”, from his last album, and an equally devoted cheer when it smoothly turned into ”Your Arms Around Me”.
The second half was a party. Disco beats, violin hooks, dancing, clapping, singing and happily bom-a-bom’ing along to ”A Sweet Summer’s Night on Hammer Hill”. And after that, a very intimate closure consisting of the two last encores (of four!), where it was just Jens Lekman, his guitar, and the audience humming along. Even Lekman himself was moved. ”You complete this night for me”, he pronounced, when he appeared back on stage for the third time. You are most welcome, Jens. It was a pleasure.
His next concert, and the last of this tour, will be in Gothenburg, his home town, and after that, he will have time to finish his new album. Right, Jens?
