Given that she such is a natural and vibrant live performer, it is quite a surprise to find that that this is Regina Spektor's first concert film.
The double disc pack contains a 22 track audio cd and a DVD of Regina and her band on the last date of her 2009 UK tour at the Hammersmith Apollo.
The film was directed by Adria Petty and intersperses straight concert footage with brief clips taken mainly during sound checks or on the tour bus.
Personally, I could have done without the crowd reaction shots many because most are of the same group of rapt looking females who obviously know the words to every song. Thankfully, these are quite brief so don't really distract from the main feature too much.
You should not be thrown by the 'Parental Advisory' warning on the cover. This is there only because of the line "someone next door is fucking to my songs" on Bobbing For Apples, one of three previously unrecorded songs. This hardly seems to merit being labelled as "explicit" and any parents concerned by such lyrics really need to get a life.
The other new songs are the a cappella Silly Eye Color Generalizations (every bit as silly as the title) and, the best of the three, the raunchy Love, You're A Whore, introduced somewhat misleadingly as a 'country' song.
Regina is not a showy performer but her qualities of warmth and wit shine through nonetheless. There is no pretentious posing or between song chatter - the luminous smile and body language alone is enough to convey that she is having a blast.
She plays guitar for the brilliant That Time and Bobbing For Apples but most of the songs are performed at the piano. Actually, she looks a little exposed on Hotel Song and Love, You're A Whore which she sings standing centre stage backed by her five-piece band of string section and drums.
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There has been a backlash in some quarters against Regina's la-de-da Annie Hall-like quirkiness but anyone with eyes and ears should be in no doubt that she is the real deal.
Not only does she look great (sporting bright red lipstick and wearing a chic little black number) but she also has a fantastic vocal range which she shows off to great effect with a check list of her best songs which brilliantly combine the goofy with the profound.
Everyone will have their own favourites. Mine are Sailor Song or Fidelity; I also enjoyed the deliberately kitschy Dance Anthem of the 80s.
This is a no alarms, no surprises show but none the worse for that. The live versions of the songs do not add anything new to the studio versions so it is the movie that makes this a must-have for fans.
Regina Spektor online
A sad footnote is that less than one year after this show the cellist and band leader Dan Cho tragically drowned while swimming in Switzerland. He was 33. The film is dedicated to his memory.
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