Where do I even begin to review this performance? I am actually at a loss for words. I was so pleasantly surprised last night at the Katie Herzig performance at The Blind Pig. Prior to the concert I had only heard one or two of her songs. I expected her to be a poppy solo artist, a chick with a guitar playing upbeat love songs all night, which would have been enjoyable, but what I saw was so much better!
Katie had a full band, and an extremely multi-talented one at that. They used instruments that you would rarely see in a live performance. She had a cellist, who also occasionally played the keyboard, a guitarist who also played the accordion, ukulele, french horn, and xylophone, a keyboardist, drummer, and bassist. It was really cool to see the musicians move between instruments with such ease. They clearly knew their music inside and out, and fully immersed themselves into the performance. They were completely comfortable onstage–it often felt like we were watching a private jam session rather than a concert, like we were all just hanging out and playing music. They really seemed to enjoy themselves, and so did the audience. They had energy, but more pronounced than that, they had heart. I felt that they were completely comfortable and open to sharing the best of their art with the audience.
Katie Herzig’s style is very unique. She has some poppy, upbeat love songs, like “Forevermore”, but even these have a unique sound, due to the variety of instruments used and the delicate, folky sound to her voice. Then she has fuller, more epic, rock/electronic songs, like “Lost and Found”, which was actually played in an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. Throughout the variability in the style of her music, her ethereal voice runs through, connecting her songs to create one genuinely unique artist.
Here’s a great example of Katie Herzig live (thought it still doesn’t compare to being there!)– a video someone took at one of her other concerts: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eveegew3-Co
