Glam-Pop Cabaret with Patrick Wolf

It Happened Last Night

WASHINGTON, D.C. The colorful multi-instrumentalist brings miniature pop symphonies to the Black Cat in support of The Magic Position.

By Jeffrey Parker 10.02.07 3:00 AM

PHOTOS BY NESTOR DIAZ

It was probably a good sign that, before the show, a staffer at Black Cat was making sure the disco ball was working. Playing to a small crowd last night, the vivacious Patrick Wolf pouted and preened like a candy-coated soul-man Monday night (Oct. 1), and truth be told, the glimmering disco ball probably wasn't even necessary to get the glamour across. Coming on like a cross between Peter Pan and David Bowie, Wolf took the stage shirtless except for a vest, with feathers in his creamsicle-orange hair. He commanded the stage the entire time, somehow pulling off rock star moves with a violin on "Overture" before going torch singer on "Teignmouth." He stalked the stage during rocker "Tristan" and galloped through the spaghetti Western strings of "The Libertine" admirably, but it was on a couple of heartbreaking songs that he truly shone, as "London" and "Pigeon Song" shimmered sadly, like glitter make-up smeared in the rain.

We asked: Wolf has talked about how The Magic Position is an attempt at creating pop songs, whereas previous efforts worked more in the realm of folk music. What is his perfect pop song, and why?

Name: Jenny Plaster
Age: 21
Hometown: Dallas, TX
Occupation: Student
"'The Magic Position' -- it's all about the handclaps, the bells, and the major key."

Name: Chris Rogers
Age: 23
Hometown: New York, NY
Occupation: Writer/blogger
"'Get Lost' because it's pretty lovey dovey and upbeat. There's clapping."

Name: Jessica Baumgartner
Age: 18
Hometown: Stafford, VA
Occupation: College student
"'Get Lost' because it talks about going on a date and it's really happy and jumpy."

Name: Paul Miller
Age: 25
Hometown: Annapolis, MD
Occupation: Consultant
"'The Magic Position' -- that gets stuck in my head for days."

Name: Vivian Ding
Age: 18
Hometown: Nanjing, China
Occupation: Student
"'The Magic Position' -- like the MTV."

Name: Louise Minton
Age: 16
Hometown: Baltimore, MD
Occupation: High school sophomore
"I think 'Bluebells' is extraordinary because it tries to retain some of the old feeling from Wind and the Wires ."

Name: Lauren Kowlaski
Age: 17
Hometown: Sterling, VA
Occupation: Hostess
"I think 'The Magic Position' -- it's good, it's dancey, and it's different from all the other stuff he's done. I have it stuck in my head every other day."

Name: Mariam Ouhamou
Age: 24
Hometown: Alexandria, VA
Occupation: Consultant
"'The Magic Position' -- that one best mixes in the orchestral parts with the poppy stuff."

Name: Karla Goodson
Age: 22
Hometown: Mitchellville, MD
Occupation: Peddler of vegan treats
"'The Magic Position,' obviously. No song has ever made me feel like that one has. If I could listen to one song for the rest of my life, it would be that one. It's full of love, it's full of hope, and it's full of dance."

Name: Brian Castro
Age: 34
Hometown: Washington, DC
Occupation: Attorney
"'The Magic Position' because it's a great blend -- there's violin in there, there are poppish sounding melodies, and it's catchy."