Joan As Police Woman returned to Auckland on Friday night, opening her three-date New Zealand solo tour with a spellbinding performance at the Raye Freedman Arts Centre.
Unlike her last appearance at the Hollywood Avondale, where she played with a full band, this was a much more intimate affair. Just Joan Wasser, a grand piano, a guitar, and a room full of devoted fans.
So very nice to be here she said, dressed in white. Thank you for meeting me here. A pause, then a wry smile. I noticed you drank the bar dry already.
Her voice — gentle, smooth, utterly mesmerizing — drifted over the hushed crowd like a warm wave. From the first note of Honor Wishes, taken from 2008’s To Survive, the audience was in rapture.
Joan As Police Woman makes small talk feel like a secret being shared. Whispered anecdotes while tuning her guitar felt more like pillow talk than stage banter. Intimate, soft, and irresistibly human. It was like falling in love slowly, then all at once.
The performance was divided into two 45-minute sets, no support act.
The venue, tucked inside Epsom Girls Grammar, was chosen, we’re told, for its excellent grand piano. A wise decision. The instrument looked and sounded magnificent, and the room itself was warm and inviting once the sold-out crowd had navigated the drinks queue (and dried out the bar).
Each song was delivered with careful restraint and emotional depth. On guitar, her fingerpicking was slow and deliberate, with melodies stretching like silk threads.
Her falsettos, delicate and poised, hung in the air like perfume.
She introduced Feed the Light with a laugh. I wrote this while stuck in a van on tour with someone who was driving me crazy.
The song, from Real Life (2006), shimmered with tension and release, and offered a glimpse into her creative process. As she put it, her options were either murder or write a song.
It’s these kinds of details that made the show feel so personal. The crowd was so quiet you could hear the static of the speakers between songs.
There were new songs too, all well-received.
The second set opened with three tracks from her latest release, Lemons, Limes and Orchids. The title track stood out, underpinned by a droning violin backing track. Pre-recorded of course, since she was busy singing and playing piano.
Where’s John Cale when you need him? she joked.
Throughout both sets, she alternated between piano and guitar, her presence effortless on both.
During I Was Everyone, the crowd joined in, becoming a gentle choir as they echoed Be heard while Joan sang you are the chosen one.
She’s also disarmingly funny. Just to let you know, she said at one point, there’s an intermission. So, you can hold it.
The first set closed with Kiss the Specifics, a complex piece she claimed had over 400 chords, assuring us she aimed to hit 93% of them correctly.
The encore brought The Magic and The Ride, perfectly wrapping up a night that was both musically rich and emotionally resonant.
As Joan As Police Woman took her bows and a couple of playful curtsies, she made a heartfelt plea. Please tell your friends about the shows in Wellington and Christchurch. I need your help.
Anyone lucky enough to have been in that room will surely spread the word. This was more than a concert. It was communion.
Azrie Azizi
Photography by Azrie Azizi
