Shakey Graves w/ The Barr Brothers
Neptune Theatre, Seattle, WA
05.28.15
We’d been hearing the buzz for a while now, about Alejandro Rose-Garcia (aka Shakey Graves) and him being on the “next big thing” list. So when we had the chance to assist on his portrait session at Sasquatch! Music Festival last weekend, we jumped on the opportunity. In person, he seemed really easygoing, and had a lot to say about bowling. We were pretty bummed to miss his live set at the festival due to overlapping obligations, but stoked that we would have the chance to see him again in Seattle just a few days later.
After openers The Barr Brothers impressed with their inventive instrumentations, Rose-Garcia came out and set up his own gear, a keyboard with the Texas flag draped over it, and his bass drum suitcase. With little fuss, he started his set solo, rocking out a couple of his signature country-tinged folk rock tunes before bringing out the band. Backed by a drummer and bass player, the energy on stage took off. Live, there’s more freak-folk, hard-rocking energy to the music than there seems to be on record, which isn’t a bad thing. The urgency and driving force behind Rose-Garcia’s guitar, the raw twang, the innovative beats, it all shows. And it all works.
Shakey Graves is on tour through the summer. Find a show here.
Review by Stephanie Dore
Photos by Sunny Martini
Shakey Graves
The Barr Brothers
