Concert review + setlist: Katie Herzig and Sara Swenson seduce the Old Rock House, Saturday, June 18
By Matt Champion
Last night, Sara Swenson and Katie Herzig proved that there is no difference between a solo singer-songwriter and one backed by a band if the artist is performing from the heart.
Taking the stage at the Old Rock Housearmed only with her guitars, Kansas City native Sara Swenson began the evening with a solo performance that was a wonder to behold. Following in the tradition of folk musicians from the past, she writes songs from the heart on topics such as her nieces and nephews, in “O, My Babies,” for example, and conveys thoughts of other road-weary travelers in “Passing Cars, Passing Time.” Like a true musical storyteller, Swenson weaved fantastic stories of love, happiness, melancholy, loss and renewed strength while filling the space between songs conversing with the audience and telling us anecdotes of how her songs came to be and tales of encounters with fans.
Whether she was fingerpicking her acoustic guitar or laying down a lush blanket of notes from her electric, Swenson’s guitar playing was very muted and uncomplicated, keeping the focus on her rich and soulful vocals that ranged from a smooth and smoky contralto to a soprano voice that somehow managed to sound full and breathy at the same time. The emotion and energy she put into her performance was inspiring, all while maintaining a sweet, down-to-earth demeanor. Despite being one woman with a guitar, she managed to fill the room with as much presence as the five-piece ensemble that followed her set. Sara mentioned to me after the show that she’s looking to come back to play in St. Louis again soon. Given her performance tonight, I’ll be the first in line when tickets go on sale.
Shortly after Sara departed, Katie Herzig and her band took the stage. The final stop on a three-night trial run, Katie and crew ran through an 18-song set comprised of fan favorites and new material from her upcoming album The Waking Sleep, which is scheduled to hit stores in September. Her sound was wide and varied, jumping from indie-rock of “Make A Noise” to the spaghetti western soundtrack country vibe of “Sumatra” and jumping to the heartache inducing ballad “I Hurt Too” and the bouncy pop of “Forevermore” while making stops at any and all genres in between.
Her backing band is one exceptionally talented group of musicians. Katie herself mainly stayed with her acoustic guitar, occasionally jumping on the keyboards and ukulele. Will Sayles put on a stellar performance at the drums, displaying an impressive control of the dynamics and volume of his kit. Cason Cooley created an excellent foundation for the rest of the group, mainly focusing on bass and synth. Claire Indie displayed her mastery of the cello, coaxing more sound out of her instrument than I thought possible. Watching Jordan Hamlin seamlessly change between guitar, accordion, clarinet, keyboards, bass, ukulele and xylophone was incredible. Watching the band members moving around from spot to spot, playing multiple instruments at once and even trading instruments mid-song added a great visual to the music they were playing.
Katie’s voice falls somewhere in the range of Rural Alberta Advantage multi-instrumentalist Amy Cole and Emily Haines of Metric. As good as she sounds singing alone, the three part harmonies sung by Katie, Jordan, and Claire were amazing. The sounds created when their voices blend together can only be described as angelic.
The one thing that really stood out about this performance was the band’s attitude throughout the entire set. They had an amazing amount interaction with each other, breaking out into huge, infectious grins when they would make eye contact with each other. Between songs they were laughing with each other while Katie or Jordan addressed the crowd. Their comfort with each other was impressive, especially when Katie took an unplanned fan request for the tune “Charlie Chaplin,” which the band hadn’t rehearsed and Cason and Will had never played. As soon as the first verse and chorus were done, both guys jumped right in and made it sound as if they’d been playing it for years.
One of the hallmarks of a fantastic live performance is that exchange of energy between the band, and it was more than evident tonight that these five musicians weren’t working; they were having a party for everyone who walked in the door and nothing was going to spoil their fun. If the fall tour performances are even half as powerful as the show they just put on, I can only predict success for the future.
I’d also like to give some praise to the sound engineer over at the Old Rock House. The sound at the venue is normally top-notch, but this show was above and beyond the norm. The levels and volume were as close to perfect as I could have imagined and made a fantastic performance even better.
Sara Swenson setlist
Be Not Far
Passing Cars, Passing Time
Impossible Alone
East
River, You and Me
O My Babies
Time To Go
Night Sounds
Katie Herzig setlist
Make A Noise
How the West Was Won
Forevermore
Songbird
Sumatra
Sweeter Than This
Hologram
I Hurt Too
Shovel
Charlie Chaplin
Free My Mind
Oh My Darling
Jack N Jill
Wasting Time
Midnight Serenade
Hey Na Na
Wish You Well
Way to the Future