The Leader

Issue date: 4/23/09 Section: Music

The Pabst is a special venue. Sometimes, artists fall in love with the ambience and wonderful acoustics as much as the crowd. This was the case when Brandi Carlile took the stage April 9. As the crowd filled in waiting for the opening act, roadies on stage were snapping photos of their own to remember the marvelous theater.

The opening act did not disappoint. Gregory Alan Isakov was the sole opening act. He warmed the crowd up for Carlile with his simple yet powerful singer/songwriter style. Isakov took the stage with nothing but an acoustic guitar, a harmonica, and a friend on fiddle and harmonies. He had as good of a time on stage as the crowd did listening to him. Isakov thanked the crowd for being so nice to him while joking about always having trouble with crowds-"I get nervous going to the grocery store," he said.

After about an hour, Isakov gave the crowd over to Carlile. She took the stage with brothers Tim and Phil (affectionately called The Twins) on guitar and bass. Because the group was playing all-acoustic, they had a cellist to round out their sound instead of a drummer.

"This is the first time we've toured without a drummer by choice and not just because we couldn't afford it," said Carlile.

She plowed through familiar cuts from her first two albums, taking numerous requests along the way. The band also played several songs from their upcoming third album due later this year.

The band filled the theater with their sound and Carlile was pleased to do so. She talked about how she opened up The Pabst before, but it's been a goal of hers for a long time to headline a show there. She had an interesting way of articulating her awe for the place. "It's always a game time decision whether I'm going to wear cowboy boots or Chuck Taylors," she said "But this theater is too nice to not wear cowboy boots."

A couple times during the show, the band went unplugged-literally. Taking advantage of the wonderful natural acoustics, the band turned off all amplification. With only the power of their vocal chords and the strumming of their stings, they filled the air with a natural sound with a power all its own.

Carlile's music works well in this simple, acoustic fashion. She falls somewhere between Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. Not quite country, not quite folk, Carlile forges a unique sound that defies easy classification.

Continuing her love affair with the space, Carlile turned the crowd into an impromptu chorus towards the end of the night. She split up the audience into three sections, teaching each one a separate piece of the three-part harmony to "Turpentine."

Later in the set, Isakov returned to the stage. Carlile is a friend and a fan of Isakov and personally asked him to join her on tour. She even played one of his songs (which he played during his own set) back to him.

The band capped off their performance with a jam-band-like cover of "Folsom Prison Blues" that lifted the crowd to their feet for the first time. Carlile and company soon returned to stage for the all-but-standard encore.

Carlile is established enough where she can sell out a theater the size of the Pabst, but she's far from a superstar. These are the best acts to see live. She's not on stage for the money or fame. She's there because she loves her art and wants to share it with her fans. A passion lies within acts like these that are tangible, especially in an intimate venue.

A member of the crowd said that she catches Carlile every time she plays in Milwaukee. I recommend you do the same.

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