Last Saturday, August 5th, the rock club at The EARL in East Atlanta Village transformed into a mesmerizing singer-songwriter showcase with three talented musicians showing off their craft in front of the attentive crowd.
Atlanta’s own Big Brutus kicked off the night with a solo set. Having recently returned from biking a chunk of the country while raising money for the International Rescue Committee, Sean Bryant is back on the hometown scene, playing some solo sets around town. Armed with just an electric and acoustic guitars with his vocals, Bryant had no problem recreating the melancholy of the albums as a solo set. Early on in the set, Big Brutus played “Scenery” from 2017’s The Odd Willow, which was magical with the full band at their album release show back in March. But even without the precise musicians surrounding him that he had at the release show, Bryant was able to meet the emotional vitality of the song with ease. With Sean playing all the hits including “Louise” and “Thoughts at so Ba”, and even sneaking in some new songs that’s he has been working on that were inspired from the bike trip, Big Brutus continues to prove to be an artist that deserves to be heard by bigger audiences.
Atlanta-based singer-songwriter Moses Nesh was up second. Nesh released his second album, No Labor-Saving Machine in April via Austin, TX label Keeled Scales. Isaac Stroup, also known as Moses Nesh, is a picker at heart. Armed with just his acoustic guitar, he mesmerizes audiences with the haunting use of the guitar, around his gritty vocals, creating a reflective atmosphere that’s perfect for night of front porch listening deep in the mountains. Moses Nesh’s music is rooted in the folk blues of the North Carolina mountains that he is originally from. It’s old time music presented by an old soul that’s still quite young in age. The loneliness and hopelessness of his music creates a quite atmosphere for the audience that you just sort of get lost in without even realizing it. You can catch Moses Nesh back at The EARL on August 31st with George Christian Pettis (of 100 Watt Horse), Casey Hood (from Lily and the Tigers) and Madeline Adams (of Flamingo Shadow).
Adam Torres closed out the night with an absolutely stellar set. Originally from Athens, Ohio, where Torres became a sort of underground legend for those that have heard his music, now the singer-songwriter is based in Austin, TX and released his latest LP and EP (Pearls to Swine – 2016 & I Came to Sing the Song – 2017 respectively) via Fat Possum Records. Hearing Torres live, it’s a wonder that he hasn’t totally stepped out of the underground legend title into a bigger spot in the hearts and ears of a wider audience. Torres falsetto is absolutely magical live. There’s no hidden tricks in his recording, that’s natural talent you hear on record that is projected just as magnificently live. Adam Torres’ songs are meditative at it’s core, they glide through your ears and provide a lift to your soul.
Torres brings an avant-garde to Americana that’s minimal, yet vast and expansive that’s both haunting and inspiring. The live sound on this night was rounded out by bassist Chris Cox (Feverbones) and the great Thor Harris on drums from Swans, Shearwater and now Thor & Friends. (Side-note shout out to Thor for being a Nazi puncher and future governor of Texas). The three together brought their sound alive around Torres soothing vocals that was evident on songs like “Juniper Arms” and “Dreamers in America”, which Torres released earlier this year for the Our First 100 Days project. Adam Torres is an experience live that you just need to see for yourself and get lost in the music with the great songwriter. Check out Adam Torres on tour now (dates below).
Check out Mike Gerry’s photos from the show:
ADAM TORRES TOUR DATES
8/16 Manchester, UK @ the Castle Hotel
8/17 Glasgow, UK The Hug and Pint
8/18 Stirling, UK Doune The Rabbit Hole
8/19 Sheffield, UK @ Regather
8/20 Breacon Beacons, UK Green Man Festival
8/22 Brighton, UK @ The Hope & Ruin
8/23 London, UK @ Seabright Arms
8/29 Pittsburgh, PA Club Cafe
8/31 Nashville, TN @ The High Watt
9/02 Ft. Worth, TX @ Main at South Side
MOSES NESH TOUR DATES
with George Christian Pettis (of 100 Watt Horse):
08.31 Atlanta, GA @ The EARL (w. Madeline Adams)
09.01 Athens, GA @ Flicker Theatre
09.02 Asheville, NC @ Downtown Books and News
09.04 Richmond, VA @ House show
09.05 Pittsburgh, PA @ Glitter Box Theater
09.06 Detroit, MI @ House show
09.07 Columbus, OH @ Cafe Kerouac
09.08 Cincinnati, OH @ Listing Loon
09.11 Nashville, TN @ Kimbro’s
09.12 Birmingham, AL @ House show
09.13 New Orleans, LA @ Circle Bar (w. Guts Club)
09.14 Tallahassee, FL @ House show
with Julia Lucille:
10.09 El Paso, TX @ The Perch at Tricky Falls
10.10 Tucson, AZ @ Exploded View (w. Karima Walker, Sun Riah)
10.12 Los Angeles, CA @ Junior High
10.14 San Francisco, CA @ The Lost Church (w. Assateague)
10.16 Portland, OR @ Turn Turn Turn (w. Johanna Warren)
10.21 Arroyo Seco, NM @ Parse Seco
BIG BRUTUS TOUR DATES:
Mon, Aug 21 Georgia Theatre Rooftop – Athens, GA w/ Jet Phase
Wed, Sep 6 THE SAINT – Asbury Park, NJ w/ Rachel Lynn
Sun, Sep 10 Rockwood Music Hall – New York, NY
