by Sophie Block
Friday night at the Ghost Room, two Texan acts played to a packed crowd of eager listeners. Sarah Jaffe, a singer-songwriter with a powerful voice and fluid guitar playing, headlined the show. Bosque Brown, a minimalist gospel band with strength in its simplicity and Mara Lee Miller’s lead vocals, kicked off the night. The Ghost Room, winner of “Best New Club” at last year’s Austin Music Awards, is located in downtown Austin. But this cozy venue stands alone on its 4th St. block --close to our many other bars, but tucked away from the crazy hubbub. The warm, dark wood and exposed brick interior is offset by elegant chandeliers in a space that set the low-key vibe for the night that was about to unfold.
Bosque Brown started off the night seated in their respective chairs, humble under the spotlights shone on them. Miller mostly played simple guitar picking patterns under her strong, haunting vocals with a vibrating timbre. About half the audience was seated on the floor, listening intently while the rest stood or watched from the wooden pew-like bleachers to the left of the stage. Her bandmate played synthesizer, keys and electric guitar. His contributions supplemented her sweet, driving sound by adding depth with each complimenting tone. His instrumentation, like his backup vocals, were soft and supportive. Bosque Brown started off its set acoustically, but after the first song, they incorporated electric beats, primarily utilized as the thread to tie songs together. Becky Howard from Sarah Jaffe’s band joined them onstage at one point to play violin and sing with Miller. The band ended the set with “Fine Lines,” a song about off of their first album, Bosque Brown Plays Mara Lee Miller (Burnt Toast Vinyl, 2005). The set was pretty mellow with a lot of spirit behind it.
Eager fans in the crowd stood up and packed in elbow to elbow to see Sarah Jaffe. Jaffe, whose career blossomed in her adopted home of Denton, TX, toured with Norah Jones in 2010. Tonight, fans were singing along with her and taking photos. Jaffe played with a full band, including guitar, bass, keys, violin and drums. The drummer incorporated a lot of use of his mallets, driving the sound forward; steady and low. Jaffe was dressed casually, and her coiffed platinum hair was in a James Dean-like swoosh above at her crown. She was warm and welcoming to the crowd, and seemed elated at the big turn-out. Her song “Clementine” off of her album Suburban Nature (Kirtland Records, 2010) got the biggest cheers of the night. The song is catchy and beautiful, and builds from lullaby sweetness to a powerful anthem. Jaffe mixed up her repertoire, playing a new song “Sucker for Your Marketing” for what she said was the second time in front of a live audience, and even covered “Hang With Me” by Swedish pop artist Robyn.
Jaffe played an immediate encore after what she said was her last song, and treated the audience to the beautiful “Plateau,” short and sweet. Jaffe, with champagne flute in hand, said that everyone should end the night with a glass of champagne, and emphasized how much she loved everyone who came out for the show. What a pleasure it always is to be in Austin, she said, whether it is to play a show or just for a visit. And might I say it was a pleasure for us, too, to have her here with us.
Friday night at the Ghost Room, two Texan acts played to a packed crowd of eager listeners. Sarah Jaffe, a singer-songwriter with a powerful voice and fluid guitar playing, headlined the show. Bosque Brown, a minimalist gospel band with strength in its simplicity and Mara Lee Miller’s lead vocals, kicked off the night. The Ghost Room, winner of “Best New Club” at last year’s Austin Music Awards, is located in downtown Austin. But this cozy venue stands alone on its 4th St. block --close to our many other bars, but tucked away from the crazy hubbub. The warm, dark wood and exposed brick interior is offset by elegant chandeliers in a space that set the low-key vibe for the night that was about to unfold.
Bosque Brown started off the night seated in their respective chairs, humble under the spotlights shone on them. Miller mostly played simple guitar picking patterns under her strong, haunting vocals with a vibrating timbre. About half the audience was seated on the floor, listening intently while the rest stood or watched from the wooden pew-like bleachers to the left of the stage. Her bandmate played synthesizer, keys and electric guitar. His contributions supplemented her sweet, driving sound by adding depth with each complimenting tone. His instrumentation, like his backup vocals, were soft and supportive. Bosque Brown started off its set acoustically, but after the first song, they incorporated electric beats, primarily utilized as the thread to tie songs together. Becky Howard from Sarah Jaffe’s band joined them onstage at one point to play violin and sing with Miller. The band ended the set with “Fine Lines,” a song about off of their first album, Bosque Brown Plays Mara Lee Miller (Burnt Toast Vinyl, 2005). The set was pretty mellow with a lot of spirit behind it.
Eager fans in the crowd stood up and packed in elbow to elbow to see Sarah Jaffe. Jaffe, whose career blossomed in her adopted home of Denton, TX, toured with Norah Jones in 2010. Tonight, fans were singing along with her and taking photos. Jaffe played with a full band, including guitar, bass, keys, violin and drums. The drummer incorporated a lot of use of his mallets, driving the sound forward; steady and low. Jaffe was dressed casually, and her coiffed platinum hair was in a James Dean-like swoosh above at her crown. She was warm and welcoming to the crowd, and seemed elated at the big turn-out. Her song “Clementine” off of her album Suburban Nature (Kirtland Records, 2010) got the biggest cheers of the night. The song is catchy and beautiful, and builds from lullaby sweetness to a powerful anthem. Jaffe mixed up her repertoire, playing a new song “Sucker for Your Marketing” for what she said was the second time in front of a live audience, and even covered “Hang With Me” by Swedish pop artist Robyn.
Jaffe played an immediate encore after what she said was her last song, and treated the audience to the beautiful “Plateau,” short and sweet. Jaffe, with champagne flute in hand, said that everyone should end the night with a glass of champagne, and emphasized how much she loved everyone who came out for the show. What a pleasure it always is to be in Austin, she said, whether it is to play a show or just for a visit. And might I say it was a pleasure for us, too, to have her here with us.
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