Friday, April 1, 2011
Rock / Roots The Acoustic LIVE Challenge - Week Three
Posted by Danielle Look on Fri, Apr 1, 2011 at 10:52 AM
Last night was another interesting evening of performances at The Acoustic LIVE Challenge. The three month-long event features five new performers every Thursday at The Ugly Monkey. The rules are simple: acoustic music only (no drums or electric instruments), original music only (no cover songs), and no more than three people on-stage per performer (supporting musicians are allowed, but that number is limited).
THE PERFORMERS
Chris Wolfe
Wolfe’s music brought a refreshing change to the singer/songwriter format, leveraging not on his guitar skills or his voice (which were both of fine quality), but on his sense of humor instead. Openly admitting a penchant for writing songs about “critters”, Wolfe won the audience by singing about his invisible dog- "I named him Spotless; he was so clean. He was the greatest dog that you have never seen."
Lounge Soundsystem
Lounge Soundsystem returned for their second year at The Acoustic Challenge, having since completed their jammy rock trifecta with the addition of bassist Ryan Goecker. Both Goecker & guitarist Brendon Riha performed with acoustic versions of their respective instruments while drummer Tyson Tiede traded in his drum kit for 2 congas and a djembe- performing rare stripped down renditions of their normally-electrified psychedelic jams.
The Postscript
Last night was the first opportunity I’ve had to see The Postscript without their former bassist Blain Crawford. I was happy to find their poppy rock still drenched with guitarist Matt Corken’s raspy vocals, effectively preserving the signature sound they’ve come to be associated with. Quite possibly the Carrot Top of The Acoustic Challenge with his own box of props, drummer Abe Jentry Shanehsaz got creative and traded his standard drum kit for a slew of percussion toys- including a shaker, tambourine, cowbell, mini egg shakers, a Rubbermaid tote, and a cigar box.
Eddie
Also returning for her second year at The Acoustic Challenge, Eddie played the second solo set of the night- showcasing her creatively self-taught guitar skills. Perched on top of a stool with a flowing scarf draped around her neck and over her exposed shoulders, dreadlocks pulled into a messy ponytail, and black tape wrapped around her fingers, Eddie played from her catalog with pure emotion- evidenced by her facial expressions and expansive vocal inflections.
Finer
The night ended on a note of rock courtesy of a slightly-stripped down version of Finer. Switching things up a bit, the keyboard (typically played by Manny De La Rosa) was absent, while the drum set was replaced with a djembe played by Robby Coleman. Finer frontwoman- the petite Stacy Basner- played a monstrous acoustic guitar with ridiculous energy and enthusiasm, while husband Ethan James confused the audience with his utilization of an electric bass… at an acoustic competition.
THE VERDICT
The top two winners advance to the semifinals on May 12th.
1. Chris Wolf
2. The Post Script
3. Eddie
4. Finer
5. Lounge Soundsystem
Danielle covers local music for NUVO.net and IndyMojo.com.
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