Familiar atmosphere at Nile performance

The crowd swarmed the auditorium, many struggling to find places to sit or stand to see Nile. For the most part, the audience was comprised of middle-aged men and women with their families. They were not, however, the regular over-the-hill group.

Willie Nile, a UB alumnus akin to classic rock icons likes Bob Dylan, came back to Buffalo for a performance at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery Friday night.

Women wore biker jackets, berets and black turtleneck sweaters. Men wandered about with long gray ponytails and beards, wearing sunglasses, despite the dim lights. The crowd interacted in an informal manner, as though they all knew each other.

This apparent familiarity was confirmed as Nile greeted members of the audience that he knew. The internationally acclaimed musician had come back to his college-days hometown, and the close-knit atmosphere made for a welcoming performance.

The artist stood alone onstage with a guitar and a piano, told a short anecdote, and began playing. At times, it might as well have been Bob Dylan singing, as Nile's voice dipped to low, flattened notes. During a few songs, his voice was similar to Bruce Springsteen and Mike Scott of The Waterboys.

Willie Nile has been putting out records since his self-titled album in 1980. His last album, "Beautiful Wreck of the World," was chosen by Billboard Magazine as one of the top 10 records of 1999. His upcoming album, "Streets of New York," has already accumulated abundant praise from musicians such as Lou Reed and Bono from U2.

Niles' songs consisted of simple rhymes of provocative lyrics mixed with rock and roll riffs from his guitar or stirring piano chords. The music ranged from Dylan-esque folk-rock to all out roots-rock with Nile jumping around, shouting the chorus of a song.

Each song, no matter the style, was lush and emotive. Nile received many standing ovations over the course of his performance.

The informal air to the concert became more apparent as Nile continued to interrupt his stories between songs to greet audience members. He even stopped one song, having forgotten the lyrics, to ask the audience the words.

A baby in the audience began to fuss and Nile stopped mid-sentence to say hello to the infant. He also invited the crowd to sing along, silencing his guitar and silently mouthing the chorus. Before playing the song, "Lost," he explained that it was his mother's favorite, and then pointed to a lady in the audience, his mother.

Each song had a tale behind its creation, including a story about an old English teacher Nile had at UB. Many of his stories were met with thunderous laughter.

The concert concluded with a remarkable encore song from "Streets of New York," entitled, "Cell Phones Ringing in the Pockets of the Dead."

Nile thanked the Albright-Knox for inviting him to be a part of the Gusto at the Gallery program.

After the performance, half of the audience lined up to purchase albums and T-shirts for Nile to sign. His new album, "Streets of New York," comes out Feb. 21.