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Yes, Sondre Lerche is endearingly handsome and yes, he has the charm of Colin Firth and the humble humor of John Mayer. But even more so, he has the musical chops to secure his place on any stage he plays on. Sondre is one of those rare, incredible artists who actually thrives in a live setting. The vocals are completely his, (he has very strict rules about backing tracks and an anti-lip synching policy). Completely alone on the stage, the elements of Sondre's voice and guitar playing lend themselves to an atmosphere of complete intimacy. A girl in the audience yelled to the Norway based musician, "Move in with us!" To which Sondre replied, "That's not something I can think about right now. We have to give it a lot of thought and make sure it's right for both of us." Maybe not coincidently, just minutes later a girl at the front of the stage fainted, (or, as Ben Grimes of The Golden Republic later said, "she probably swooned, not fainted.") The club was incredibly hot with a crowd gathered to capacity. Sondre cautioned everyone to drink lots of water. "I need your help on this one. Just as last time, I have not brought any girls with me to Seattle... not on stage at least. But, there's about two hundred of us here. Two hundred's better than one girl on stage, right?" Then, with help from the crowd, Sondre played, "Modern Nature," a quirky folk song with inflected pop tones. "I have a song I want to sing for you. I don't know how to play it on guitar, but I want to share it with all of you." With that, someone in the audience yelled out, "Freebird!" Not missing a beat, Sondre joked, "No, it's actually "Sweet Home Alabama." Then, he launched into a beautiful a cappella version of "The More I See You" by Chet Baker. There was a new song as well. "After All" only proved the maturity and musical growth that Sondre has taken just since his latest record was recorded. He seems to be the kind of artist who will only evolve with time rather than become comfortable and stagnated like so many other artists tend to do. For "Don't Be Shallow," the Golden Republic came out on stage to back up Sondre on a few songs before saying goodnight. It was obvious that whether alone on stage or backed by a full band, Sondre Lerche is a diverse artist who can channel his energy and focus into any musical environment he is placed in. To have the option of seeing this promising artist perform live and to choose not to, would be to do yourself a huge disservice. Sondre is a rare talent who understands and respects the spirit of authentic music. |
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