One of the odder musical double-bills of late has to be tonight's Neko Case-Victoria Williams gig at West End Cultural Centre.
If you go by order of appearance, Case is ostensibly the headliner. But if this matchup were a boxing card, either gal is qualified to be queen of the ring. Case has youth on her side -- she's a brash, insurgent country rebel with a mane of crimson locks, more attitude than a civil servant and torchy pipes that just won't quit. But Williams has experience -- this veteran folksinger-songwriter with the Olive Oyl voice has an idiosyncratic style that's been hard to beat and has made her a fan favourite.
So here's the tale of the tape. You pick -- and please, no wagering.
NEKO (THE HARD) CASE
Age: 30
Birthplace: Alexandria, Va.
Training Out of: Chicago, Ill.
Record: One album as drummer for Vancouver punk-poppers Maow; two exuberantly acclaimed discs of insurgent country: The Virginian and last year's critically lauded Furnace Room Lullabye. Also moonlights as girl singer for Vancouver popsters New Pornographers.
New Moves: Canadian Amp, a home-recorded set of tunes by Canuck songwriters, including Neil Young, Mike O'Neill from the Inbreds and even MuchMusic veejay Sook-Yin Lee. "Then there's a song written about a dream I had, and there's a song about the Sadies," says Case.
Training Regimen: Road work -- and plenty of it. "I haven't stopped for about the past year and a half," says Case, fittingly enough, from the back seat of a car driving through Bozeman, Mont. "I just did a tour with the New Pornographers, and then in four days I'm appearing on the Grand Ole Opry."
Recent Matches: A real heavyweight -- Ray Davies from The Kinks, who joined Case and the Pornographers onstage at this spring's South by Southwest festival in Austin, Tex., to sing Starstruck from his band's Village Green Preservation Society. "That was very surreal," confesses Case, claiming to recall little of the event. "I'm a huge Kinks fan. And if you're a huge Kinks fan and you're standing onstage next to Ray Davies, you black it all out out of fear and unworthiness."
In Her Corner: Her Boyfriends -- a three-piece outfit anchored by steel guitar whiz and multi-instrumentalist Jon Rauhouse. "It should be a more intimate show."
On Her Opponent: "I love her. She's great. I met her once a few years ago, but I don't think she remembers me."
