Simmer Down

Troubadour Kenn Kweder is gonna get it out of his system on Saturday.

by A.D. Amorosi

KENN QUITTER? Nah, Kweder's still gonna play shows. (CLICK IMAGE FOR LARGER VERSION)

"It's been a good 34 years of rocking out, but you gotta respect the tea leaves when they're telling you something," says Kenn Kweder, talking about his Nov. 15 "retirement show." Get this straight. Kweder's not stopping his solo shows. With a buggy storyteller's dedication to detail and a sense of lyrical ire and wonder comparable to Dylan and Reed, Kweder's long been Philadelphia's Troubadour with a capital "T." Have acoustic guitar, will travel is the Southwest Philadelphia native's motto. But Kweder also had occasion to use more dramatic settings for his songs — baroque rock shows with large bands and over-the-top theatrical flourishes. These events were often akin to a gospel revival, a bloodletting and a high school restaging of Tommy. That level of energy and promotion has worn Kweder down enough so that he's ceasing the big rock outs after this last one.

City Paper: Was there one final moment that made you decide to kill the rock show?

Kenn Kweder: I guess you could say it was an accumulation of gigs and events over the last couple of years. But the straw that broke the Kweder's back would be on New Years Eve of '08 when I headlined a show downtown and had a very poor turnout — after serious and vigorous promotion of said show and an aggressive publicity campaign. I thought to myself then, "If I can't sell out on New Years Eve I am definitely done with the whole original rock thing." I ain't complaining, y'know.

CP: It's tough work, these shows?

KK: The baroque rock shows I've done throughout the years require colossal strength, tremendous discipline and trillions of drinks to pull off successfully. Without real representation or management that would do all the phone calls and protection, I have been pulling off this Kweder thing for a few decades.

CP: This isn't the end, right?

KK: First off, I ain't going nowhere. I am always gonna be Kenn Kweder the performer, and playing; I am just gonna stop doing ornate rock shows. They kill me. All that leads up to the show has got to be perfect; otherwise I flip out inside and sometimes go missing for days after a performance. The last MIA episodes were, shall we say, dangerous and I believe some kooky divine intervention stepped in to prevent certain things from happening to me. I've been real lucky. I don't wanna press my luck too far. It might swing in the wrong direction.

HALF OFF DEPOT

Why live life at full price?

CP: Was there one great show where you were at your absolute Kwederist?

KK: The shows I did at the Bijou in 1977 with the Secret Kidds were some of the best I ever did and occupy a special part in my memory banks. That's when I realized I was coming into my own. With the help of some absurdly gifted and intelligent players, the Kweder I am today was born. There was a show I did in 1987 at Dobbs for the release of my double vinyl Pandemonium Years that — was transcendent and transfigurative. I was in two separate universes at once and the audience touched both planes of existence as well. And I ain't kidding. I even did a private party this past summer in New York at the Parkside Lounge — super packed, booze galore, with me doing a 3-hour set of all up-tempo long versions of Kweder stuff, some cool covers, my rants and ravings, and eventually me crawling on my hands and knees through the audience. I gave the audience my all during a 110 degree heat wave. After it was over, I felt like a biblical sacrifice had just taken place on that stage, in that club, and I was that sacrifice.

CP: So this is it?

KK: This will be my last all-out Kenn Kweder Original Rock Show with all the intensity that I can still muster. Believe me, I can still muster.

(a_amorosi@citypaper.net)

Kenn Kweder & The Men from Wawa with Greg Davis, Kevin Karg, Monk Manley and Michael Radcliffe, Sat., Nov. 15, 10:30 p.m. (sold out) and midnight, $12, Tin Angel, 20 S. Second St., 215-928-0978, tinangel.com.