Sara Bareilles: Between The Lines - Live At The Fillmore (Sony Music Blu-ray)

 

Picture: B+     Sound: B+     Extras: B+     Concert: B+

 

 

Sarah Bareilles and her band have finally broke through into mainstream popularity with her hit song Love Song, which has been played repeatedly on radio and commercials now for well over a year.  Thinking that she might just be another one-hit wonder, I was interested to see what type of production this piano pounding jazzy induced vocalist could come up with, its arrival onto Blu-ray as Between The Lines - Live At The Fillmore no less made for a great investigation.

 

To my amazement, there is some real talent here, not just in coming up with catchy little grooves, but in the authenticity of the music, the way the band gels, and they have fun playing together…it’s magical.  Recorded live at the Fillmore in July 2008 it’s hard not to compare her to people like Norah Jones or Fiona Apple, but again she presents her own talents and does not try to imitate or recreate something that she is not.  To prove this, this production is not just a typical concert DVD, but rather a personal journal through the bands touring mixed with some creative elements and live playing to create a really clever and unique experience that really captures some awesome talent.

 

 

Track Listing:

 

Bottle It Up*

Vegas

Morningside

Love on the Rocks

Between the Lines

Fairytale*

August Moon

City

Love Song*

Many the Miles

(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay

Gravity

 

*music video also included

 

 

Since she has a fairly limited depth her catalog of songs, it’s wise to throw in some renditions as done here to bring familiarity to the concert experience and she does these songs justice, even hard ones to pull off.  The concert runs 2-hours and is never dull, not even for a moment.  This is one of the more enjoyable concerts released to date and is a must-have in any Blu-ray collection.

 

Not only that, but there is also a bonus CD with the entire set list and is a super cool extra for sure!  Especially considering I prefer the arrangements of the songs done live verses the studio recordings.

 

The concert is presented in a 1.78 X 1 high definition transfer in 1080p24 and looks fantastic.  The Fillmore is a beautiful place; the set looks terrific with combination of live footage along with some creative production at times to take us out of the concert hall and along with the band in a variety of places.  Equally impressive is the choice of an uncompressed PCM 2.0 Stereo mix or Dolby TrueHD 5.1, both of which are impressive, here I tend to lean a bit more to the TrueHD mix, which feels more engaging with more low-end presence and the band really utilizes more guitars and other instruments that I wasn’t expecting since most the songs seem more piano driven.

 

Extras include the bonus CD, plus three music videos and some exclusive acoustic versions as well.  A must for any collection!  Really!

 

 

-   Nate Goss