October 7, 2011

Alana Amram and the Rough Gems


Alana Amram at Momo's on Monday night.


Wow, I really like this lady.  And, I was lucky enough to see her twice this week as she and her band spent a spell in Austin on their tour from New York.  A short, but lovely set at Momo's on Monday night (a school night...gasp!), and last night under the flickering orange glow of the electric chandeliers at Skinny's Ballroom with Archive War and John Wesley Coleman.  

Alana Amram and the Rough Gems are a little bit country, a little bit rock (I might even say psychedelic rock), and a lot of folk.  And these influences all twist and turn their way through the songs like a rolling river.  The pedal steel lends a lonesome and sometimes raucous ground to the barely noticeable twang of Amram's lovely vocals.  She sings with a sincere wistfulness in contrast to her in-between-song banter of self-deprecating humor and a mischievous smile.  New Yorkers, check her out.

Sidenote:  Skinny's is a fantastic newish venue in town with a radio station livestreaming all of their shows to boot.  Friends in Colorado tuned in to hear Mason last night, bringing us closer across the mountains and deserts between to experience live music together.  I can hear Mark say as he kicks back in his living room, "Keep it coming!"

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