(Photo by Christopher Victorio for PureVolume)

We’ve been tardy and flailing while trying to pass along our summary bulletins of the always-soulful Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival (nearly two-weeks later).  What can we say?  The world and its toiling: overrated.

We caught great, timeless acts throughout the Festival, and in time will tell their tales.  We would be remiss, however, if we didn’t at least list our ten favorite performances (out of the 25 or so acts we caught) at HSB 2012 , which were (in ascending order):  Lloyd Cole, Conor Oberst, Jenny Lewis, Ben Kweller, Chuck Prophet & the Mission Express, Dave Alvin & the Guilty Ones, Nick Lowe, Giant Giant Sand, The Head and the Heart, and the fantastic Glen Hansard.

We have had a heart for Hansard ever since his poignant, heartfelt songs and performances that made up the movie Once (if you haven’t seen, there’s this weekend’s movie for ya).  But nothing prepared us for Hansard’s performance at HSB.  Fearing another spare, acoustic set (like Lloyd Cole and Nick Lowe, as lovely as they were), we actually debated attending other stages instead.  But our gut at Once told us to adhere to the age-old axiom:  when in doubt as to musical alternatives, always go with the Irishman.  You can take that one to the grave folks.

Instead of solo, Hansard showed up with an enormous and enormously-talented 11-piece band (including three each of strings and horns), and proceeded to deliver THE set of the Festival.  Though far too short a set (see the setlist way below), Hansard and band packed a punch throughout that will not soon be forgotten by us or the others in attendance.

To finish off his fine set, Hansard gave us a great one-two medley that began with Fitzcarraldo (Hansard’s Frames song, and an homage of sorts to Werner Herzog’s fine 1982 film of same name) and ended with a braying and boisterous Don’t Do It that caught the crowd stamping and crowing for more.  To get a feel, check out videos of the one-two below, the second being ours.  On Fitzcarraldo, the strings (Colm Mac Con Iomaire‘s fiddle in particular) shone through.  And closer Don’t Do It was Hansard’s homage to the late, great Levon Helm that featured (it turns out) Helm’s own horn section, some additive dance-moves from Hansard, and the perfect, Helm-esque accompanying vocals of drummer Graham Hopkins.

It was a textbook, one-two finish that left many scrambling for their smart-phones to see where Hansard and crew would play next.  We would have left the Festival and driven 500-miles to see them again.  It was that good.  But their set at HSB was the last California date  on their tour (after a raved-about show the night before at the Fillmore and one show in LA in June).  The next time they come around, don’t you do it:  don’t you miss ’em.

Setlist:

1. Love Don’t Keep Me Waiting
2. Respect (Otis Redding–due respect, Aretha–cover)
3. Talking With The Wolves
4. Low Rising
5. When Your Mind’s Made Up (the only song from Once, but a highlight)
6. Bird of Sorrow
7. Astral Weeks (Van Morrison cover)
8. Fitzcarraldo
9. Don’t Do It (a cover of The Band’s arrangement of the great Holland-Dozier-Holland song)