S played Lilypad – 10/13

S is the current project of Jenn Champion (formerly Jenn Ghetto) of 90s slowcore greats Carissa’s Wierd, who has released four albums under the moniker since 2001 and brought her tour in support of last year’s Cool Choices to the cozy Lilypad on a recent Tuesday night. 

I’ll forever rep Carissa’s Wierd as one of the finest sad bands of all time. Each of their three LPs are chock full of hushed and heartbreakingly beautiful songs that have helped me through many a lonely night, as I’m sure they’ve done for many others. They’re the kind of band you develop an intense personal connection with as a listener, and Jenn penned many of their most powerful songs. Naturally, I’ve long been looking forward to seeing her perform.

S’s latest material, which comprised most of the night’s setlist, is a fair amount more upbeat than most of what Carissa’s Wierd touched upon, but Jenn’s lyrical wit and honestly were still a prominent feature of the music. Her dry sense of humor also translated well to the stage (or lack-thereof, in the Lilypad’s case). And covering Kavinsky’s “Nightcall” with Gem Club’s Christopher Barnes towards the end of the set was a welcome surprise.

Gem Club had performed immediately prior, offering up a gorgeous set which saw the audience seated on the floor and lost in Barnes’ piano-driven and harp/keyboard-accompanied songs. I rarely find myself sitting down at a non-formally seated venue, but in this case it felt like the appropriate way to experience such delicate, personal music. Also, as a side note, it’s extremely cool that the Lilypad has a grand piano that can be casually broken out for sets like this one. The Lilypad is truly one of the good ones.

Solo incarnations of fellow Boston bands IAN and Littlefoot provided strong opening support for the evening, rounding out a remarkably strong bill of singer-songwriters. Photos from all four sets (yes, even a few from the floor during Gem Club) are below.