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David Duchovny in Zurich - 17 May 2016
David Duchovny, best know for playing Fox Mulder in The X-Files and Hank Moody in Californication, has now ventured into the realms of literature and music. His most recent novel Bucky F*cking Dent was published in April 2016; his debut album Hell or Highwater came out last year.
It's always a risk for an established actor to try his hand at being a rock star - the term "vanity project" springs to mind. Thankfully, the songs on Hell or Highwater are refreshingly low-key and rootsy, with Duchovny singing about his life experiences.
Now that he's touring the album and playing live, the question is: is Duchovny any good? Well, yes and no. I'll come right out with it: he can't sing for toffee. Objectively speaking, he shouldn't be fronting a band until his voice becomes more powerful. The mitigating circumstances: Duchovny is aware of this. In an interview with Billboard last year, he said: "I'm not a guy who came out of the womb with perfect pitch. I'm never gonna win American Idol and I never will, but I do have something to say".
If you know this in advance, it's much easier to enjoy his concerts. If you come in expecting a first-rate singer, you'll be disappointed. Either way, it's a novel sensation being at a gig and feeling that the whole endeavour is both embarrassing and endearing. Embarrassing because the vocals are subpar; endearing because Duchovny is doing it anyway.
Musical ability or no, Duchovny - backed by his accomplished band - is clearly having a whale of a time, and that joy is transmitted to the audience. He's witty and charismatic and he's not shy about getting up close and personal: the concert has barely begun and he's already jumped right into the crowd. And when he lets loose with a trademark Hank Moody "mothaf*ckaaa", he wins over more than just the first few rows.
Obviously, the main draw of this concert is Duchovny's celebrity status; the chance for us all to see a bona fide Hollywood star in the flesh. The music is secondary and, in a live setting, strays too far into American dad-rock territory to be particularly exciting, a few groovy funk moments notwithstanding. I wanted to believe - but it didn't quite happen.
- Anna Wirz
Setlist:
Positively Madison Avenue
The Things
Stars
Someone Else's Girl
Stay (David Bowie cover)
If Less Is More, More Is Less
Unsaid Undone
Every Third Thought
Another Year
When The Time Comes
Hell Or Highwater
3000
Square One (Tom Petty cover)
Let It Rain
Thank You (Sly & The Family Stone cover)
(Source: setlist.fm)
