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Paramount 'lives in the moment' with Jennings
 Britt Johnsen -- Diversions Editor
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Sitting patiently yet anxiously at the Paramount Theatre, incessant chatter was abuzz as blue and yellow lights glowed in the faces of the anxious audience. It could have been nothing else: a Mason Jennings concert.
Singer/songwriter Mason Jennings has once again embraced St. Cloud with the passion and profundity that this contemporary folk artist best expresses. Back in town for the second time in one year, this indie artist showed a full audience Wednesday night the perfect elements to a great show.
First, one must have a great set list. Jennings' set list ranged in material from earliest to latest, including material from his latest album, "Simple Life," which is comprised of material he wrote from 1994-1998, a span in which Jennings' career first bloomed. The first four songs were from that album, and the fourth song called "Adrian," from his spring 2002 release, "Century Spring." Sitting down to a piano for that song, Jennings revealed to the crowd that "this is like some weird dream where you're on stage by yourself in your underwear. I'm having fun."
Having fun is another important element to the perfect performance. Without that, the rest of the crowd would not have fun. Jennings pleased the crowd by obviously enjoying himself, with confidence to reveal to the crowd that he has a cold, and not to be bothered by his voice cracking. He also was comfortable enough with making errors like forgetting lyrics to songs such as "Bullet." Jennings' unique confidence and humble composure made for a comfortable and relaxing performance to enjoy.
But how could you not be confident as Mason Jennings, one of the most talented and mature artists to recently come out of the midwest. Inspired by artists such as Billie Holiday, The Roots, Bob Dylan, Shellac and Led Zeppelin, this musician began with the drums at age 14. By age 19, Jennings had picked up other instruments, wrote and sang his own music, and already attracted much attention from major booking agencies, and had received offers from record companies. But Jennings didn't want to be encumbered by losing his creative freedom in songwriting, so he kept writing music, putting out records and touring. By 2002, he was the entrepreneur of his own record label, Architect Records, and signed a distribution deal with established East Coast indie label Bar/None Records. Jennings continues to tour three out four seasons in a year, taking winters off to write. He takes that time to develop as a person and an artist, enriching his life, and others' lives, with his brilliance.
"It's good to develop your craft," Jennings said. "I feel like I won' t be good until I'm 40 or 50."
The hair on my arms was standing up by the time Jennings told the crowd that it was time for a break. There was a 15 minute intermission after almost an hour of brilliant folk rock, and a pleased crowd rushed away to buy merchandise, get something to eat or make a trip to the restroom. Smiles were ubiquitous and dicontentment was nowhere to be found. All awaited the return of the perfect performance.
When Jennings and his band came back onstage, the audience refreshed the theater with claps and cheers. Playing another hour of music, Jennings proved that timing is yet another element of the perfect performance. Jennings and the band came back after a fashionably punctual 20 minutes, and played pieces such as "California" and "Darkness Between the Fireflies" at the right moment, rousing people to the point of standing ovations and shouts of "Marry me!" and "I want to be you!"
It was the right time and the right place to be there, and during the last song, "Living in the moment," Jennings said it all, at the right time, in the right place: "I'm living in the moment with the friends I love."
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