Friday, July 26, 2013

Feist at Newport Folk

Leslie Feist played the main stage at Newport Folk just now with the rain falling and soaking fans pulling up close to the stage. She was with her drummer and keyboard player, and all of them locked into a great groove and feel. Feist’s guitar playing anchored the whole set and it was inspired and rugged and rocking and spontaneous. All the familiar melody lines ran through the songs in a different way. She came out to the front part of the stage a couple of times and the crowd loved it. She put her guitar down and grabbed her hat at one point and did a little 5 second moonwalk as she launched into another song. Feist uses her voice in such an unusual way, running up as it rises, swooping down as dips and dives, pulling back and rushing forward, opening up to the vast expanse of her art.