Third Man Records mastermind Jack White has been notorious for finding acts that combine a nostalgic feel with modern spunk. On this night Sala Rossa was a showcase of Third Man talent.
The show that was originally scheduled for Corona but was moved due to poor sales, which seemed odd when you looked around at a full room with people still pouring in when Olivia Jean hit the stage. The Black Belles member, a band most famous for their Stephen Colbert collaboration, Charlene, gave a performance which rang much more alt country and less gothic than the Belles. She did pay tribute to her spookier side with a cover of Space’s Female Of The Species. A good warm-up for the crowd, she gave the crowd reason to start moving.
Headline act Benjamin Booker hit the stage looking much younger than his 25 years. A very shy wave to the crowd showed a performer not yet comfortable as a rock star. From openers Always Waiting and Chippewa, Booker proves himself an anachronism, a blend of 40s blues and 90s grunge that recalls Kurt Cobain covering Leadbelly’s Where Did You Sleep Last Night? The common thread here is two styles of guitar playing that rely more on emotion than a clean sound or technical perfection.
While noisy hip shakers were the order of the evening, Booker slowed things down to a sway with the haunting Slow Coming, a song that perfectly mirrored the vulnerability that Booker displayed onstage, rarely actually looking up at the crowd.
Booker wore his influences on his sleeve with back to back covers of Otis Redding’s Shout Bamalama and bluegrass standard Lil’ Liza Jane. While not a cover, if you close your eyes you might imagine Chubby Checker on stage as he rips into the opening riff to his single Violent Shiver. Nearing the end of his set, it brought the crowd to a fever pitch.
To close the night out, he tapped the grungesque Have You Seen My Son? A closeout that brought a jam finish that came just short of guitar smashing and a rare display of bravado from Booker, leaving his guitar vibrating on the stage.
As he gets more comfortable in the shoes of a rock star, Benjamin Booker could become the biggest of Jack White’s proteges, the Eminem to White’s Dr Dre. Although if he wants to stick around the rocker’s Third Man entourage, he may want to learn to keep his merch booth fully stocked with vinyl.
Review – Richard James
Photos – Jason Hughes
