the eagles playing the inaugural show in a large corporate arena…or a local girl playing a show with a guy from toronto and a couple from iceland in an old church, what to do, what to do? in my opinion, such an easy decision, a no brainer.
head to the old church.
each of the artists played about a 45 minute set, all acoustic.
the evening opened with the guy from toronto, doug paisley, i was completely unfamiliar with him and his music, and loved every moment of his opening set. he played a very quiet set of great originals. his writing is strong and literal and he has a quiet, hushed but, very expressive voice that perfectly matches his music and writing style.
next up was Ólöf Arnalds, and i will openly say that i have been hesitant to embrace the whole icelandic music phenom of sigor ros, bjork, etc, often dismissing it as lame hipster chic. i will admit, i was not looking towards this part of the show with much anticipation. damn, was i wrong.
after finally getting over the mental block and accepting that i wasn’t going to be able to understand a single word she was singing, i sat back and just listened. her voice then took over the air as an instrument to me, and what a beautiful one it was. and odd balance between operatic and broadway. the quiet, sensitive vocals were overwhelming. she was accompanied by a friend (not going to embarrass myself and even attempt his name), they opened the set with him improvising on the church organ then joining her on acoustic guitar the rest of the evening. on top of the stunning voice, they delivered some subtle, quietly beautiful finger picking on the guitars. also, on top of everything else working for them, they were charming, disarming personalities who obviously love what they are doing and sharing it with others. and while their original music was the highlight of the set, late in, she said that she felt inspired to do something that might be “unholy” (considering they were playing in a church) and after some extended finger-picking on their guitars, she rolled into “he little girl is your daddy home, did he go and leave you all alone…” and delivered a wonderful cover of bruce springsteen’s “i’m on fire.” the juxtiposition of her quiet, almost angelic voice and the lyrics of that song, couldn’t help but bring a smile to your face. while i don’t think i’m ready, based on what i’ve heard, the whole “icelandic thing,” i’d go see these two again in a heartbeat, i loved them.
cheyenne marie mize, the host and originator of the evening closed out the night, with pretty much what i’ve come to expect from her. a set of beautifully delivered, inspired original music. tonight was was no exception and the official release show for her re-release of “born lately” on the son a blast label (see earlier post).
tonight, cheyenne was joined by joan shelly for a couple of songs and played mostly electric guitar (and no fiddle). she played several songs from “born lately” and introduced a couple of new one’s that will hopefully find their way on to a new release in the near future.
cheyenne will be embarking on her first extensive tour thru the US this month, catch her if she’s anywhere near you. you won’t be disappointed:
10/15 – Columbus, OH @ Wexner Center Performance Space#
10/16 – Louisville, KY @ Christ Evangelical United Church#
10/17 – Gambier, OH @ The Horn Gallery at Kenyon College*
10/18 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace*
10/19 – Montreal, QB @ Il Motore*
10/20 – Boston, MA @ TT The Bears*
10/21 – Brooklyn, NY @ The Sycamore^
10/23 – Brooklyn, NY @ Surreal Estate^
10/24 – Philadelphia, PA @ M Room*
10/25 – Baltimore, MD @ Sonar Club Stage*
10/27 – Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506*
10/28 – Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade*
10/29 – Nashville, TN @ 3rd & Lindsley*
10/30 – Memphis, TN @ Young Avenue Deli*
11/01 – Dallas, TX @ Prophet Bar*
11/02 – Austin, TX @ Emo’s*
11/04 – Scottsdale, AZ @ Martini Ranch*
11/05 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Hotel Café*
11/06 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Hotel Café*
11/07 – San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Shop*
11/08 – Arcata, CA @ Playhouse
11/11 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios Apartment
11/16 – Bloomington, IN @ Bishop
# w/ Ólöf Arnalds
^ w/ Christopher Paul Stelling
* w/ Johnny Flynn
what we need is music 