Mark Erelli opens and joins in with the band!

Concert review by Bob McKillop

At left, Carrie Rodriguez and Hans Holzen.

Carrie Rodriguez put on a dynamite show at One Longfellow Square in Portland on September 3rd.  The set list showcased the songs on her new CD “She Ain’t Me”.  We heard a collection of co-writes that ranged from distortion-tinged rock numbers to Crooked Still – like foot-tappers.  Ms. Rodriguez is an extremely talented young lady, and her performance that night belied her hard work, her dedication to her craft, her ambition, and the support from top-notch management resources. 

She was classy, edgy, and hip.  Dressed in black, with leather high-heeled boots, and a skull-and-crossbones emblem on her guitar strap, she put on a mesmerizing display of technical musicianship, backed by a killer band.  The only thing missing was a deep connection with the audience - Rodriguez seemed to be running down a well-rehearsed program, with only a passing regard for the high positive energy that was coming back at her from the house.

She opened the show with “Seven Angels on a Bicycle”, which was the title track of her immediately preceding album.  Spacey electric guitar riffs, a grooving percussion and bass line, and her soft, strong vocals created a dreamy context.   The impressionistic lyrics evoke time spent with someone very familiar, doing things not particularly validating. 

Next was “Infinite Night”, from her new album, and written by Rodriguez and Gary Louris of The Jayhawks.  An ominous, driving drum beat and dark swaths of grinding power chords frame a set of lyrics that paint a hard picture of the world.  But the song is strangely hopeful – the message is about perspective, about taking a deep breath and understanding our place in the universe.

Rodriguez pulled out her fiddle for “Absence”, which she wrote with one of my favorite songsmiths, Mary Gauthier.  This song has the feel of old-time mountain music updated for electric instruments and modern sensibilities.  Rodriguez’s fiddling is superb; lots of subtlety and finesse, strong and courageous in the breaks, and great tone.  On this tune, she sang with a lot of enthusiasm and soul.  Her voice is clear and strong, and sits well with the fiddle timbre.  She plays well with vocal dynamics, and draws us in with cracking vocal emoticons.  This was one of my two favorite songs in the performance.

The other song I liked a lot was “El Salvador”, another tune written with Gary Louris.  It's light and breezy, with a Caribbean beat, and a bunch of great lyrical hooks and rhymes.  It’s a warning to a lover who has been away maybe a little too long – better get back here before something happens.   The rollicking beat in the verses lift you into a great anthemic chorus with long vocal swells. 

“I know you got a job to do,

But I can’t live my life for you

And today I look much older than I should…

So many miles between us..

We gotta hold on to that feeling

And get on home

You better get on home…”

The band supporting Rodriguez did a great job – they shone individually and as a unit, but left plenty of room for her vocals.  Hans Holzen is a fret board ace and a tone master, and gets some great, spooky sounds out of his vintage Stratocaster.  Eric Platz on the drum kit and Kyle Kegerrels on double bass laid the foundation.  All three of them contributed their considerable talents to Carrie’s album, and their confidence with the music made for a well-integrated performance.  

One of my favorite folk songwriters and performers opened the show – Mark Erelli got the crowd nicely warmed up with his wonderfully written and expertly performed, literate story songs about his life and his political views.  Mark has a new album out, called “Delivered”, and it’s another great collection of tunes.  He sat in with the band on lap steel guitar, and also joined Carrie at the front of the stage, on guitar and vocals, for a couple of numbers.

At left, Mark Erelli.

It was a great show, and the audience responded with a long, loud demonstration at the end.  Carrie and the band returned to the stage (along with opener Mark Erelli).  She had been on a knife-edge of intensity and focus for almost 90 minutes, and had delivered one of the most professional performances that I can remember.  She had hit all her marks perfectly, and in the after-burn of her accomplishment, I watched a young girl with a love for fiddle tunes and country music emerge from inside the highly-polished professional entertainer.  She stepped back up to the mic and selected a song that she loved for her encore: Merle Haggard’s “Today I Started Loving Her Again”.  Her affection for this tune, and for the music it represents, brought her back to the audience, and the connection she made wrapped the show up nicely.

Carrie Rodriguez is making waves on iTunes, AAA radio, and on her tour across the country in support of her new album.  It really is a great collection of songs, sung by a wonderful vocal talent and backed by top-shelf musicians.  You can purchase it from Amazon.com, or download tracks from iTunes, through links on her website (http://www.carrierodriguez.com).  If you get a chance to see her live, do so.  If she can learn to step outside of her excellent performance and connect with the crowd, she will be unstoppable, but even now, I guarantee that you won’t be disappointed.

 

 

(Great job, Tom Rota!)