This show was totally last-minute for us. Some friends of ours (Susan and Mosh= folk community staples) were in the area and invited us to tag along to see Kris Delmhorst. We had heard her name before, but didn’t know any of her music and had never seen her. It was on our to-d0 list, however, so we were quite excited to experience her for the first time live. Hayward Williams opened for her, and then played with her during her set. We liked him well enough, though we think he still has some work to do in so far as stage presence. Couldn’t really hear what he was singing, but it sounded pretty. What he did over top of Kris’s music was quite lovely, though!
Which brings us to Kris Delmhorst! Our friends really hyped her up, and we were quite presently surprised to have those expectations met! What a stellar performer. First things first, the girl can write. I was writing down lyrics on the cocktail napkin because I didn’t want to forget them. She’s also got such a sweet voice; very listenable. If we had to describe her, we’d say she’s Dar Williams meets Edie Carey meets Kathleen Edwards. Definitely one of our favorite musical discoveries in recent history. Her set was as follows:
- Anybody’s Heaven
- Down To The Wire
- Oleander
- Hurricane
- Real Mistakes (unrecorded)
- Just What I Meant
- Riverwide
- Birds of Belfast
- Turning Of The Wheel (Chip Smith Project Cover)
- 1000 Reasons
- If Not For Love
- Open Road
- Broken White Line
- Water, Water
- Highdiver
We didn’t have cash on us at Passim, but went home and downloaded all of these songs and more. We suggest you go ahead and do the same. She’s a gem, and we’re so glad to finally be familiar with her! And some folk gossip we didn’t know before the show: Kris is married to Jeffrey Foucault!
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