Sunday, September 14, 2008

Meiko @ The Canal Room

On Friday night I got to see Meiko perform at The Canal Room. The Canal Room is a fancyish lounge type place. It was a very nice venue actually, and this was my first time there. Drinks are pricey, but they actually lit the stage pretty well, so they get bonus points for that.

Up first was Joey Ryan, with a gentle, depressing acoustic set. His songs are well-written and pretty. His singing seems effortless. But I have to say content-wise his music is a bit of a downer. He seems to be aware of that though and even jokes about it. He was great at the in-between-song sarcastic banter with the audience, calling them out on how chatty they are and saying things like "so all you people talking got in for free, right?" or "not a lot of us guys with guitars write songs about past relationships..." and things along those lines. It's too bad he doesn't use some of his sarcastic humor in his music. My favorite song was his last one, which was really the only "happy" song he performed. It would've been nice to see him smile more. But the talent is there and I still enjoyed his music.

Meiko was up next and she was adorable. She was sweet and talkative. She told stories about where her songs came from, most of which were pretty funny. I love her voice - though her propensity for twisting her jaw to right when she sings makes it look less effortless than Joey Ryan - and I really enjoyed when she had other instrumentalists on stage (an upright bass, cello and a ukulele). It added a nice fullness. Her songs are fun and poignant. She utilizes some of that sarcasm and wit that Joey Ryan was so good at between songs and could also really use in his music.

All in all it was a really pleasant night.

Like a Cloak [mp3] - Joey Ryan - "With It's Roots Above and Its Branches Below" (iTunes)
Under My Bed [mp3] - Meiko - "Meiko" (iTunes)

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1 comment:

mmrules said...

Thanks for the Meiko update !

Love her voice.. :)