One of the most exciting concerts I have seen in a long time was Gary Clark Jr. at the 9:30 Club in DC last night. I am a relatively recent fan, and first heard of Gary from an Austin Monthly cover story in March 2012. Since then I have listened frequently to his Bright Lights EP, and more recently to his new full length album, Blak and Blu.
Gary Clark Jr. at The 9:30 Club 11/10/12 (Bill Phelps Photo)
Gary's musical mentors were some of the legends of the Austin, Texas music scene including Jimmie Vaughn and Clifford Antone. He has been a musical fixture in Austin for the past decade, winning a number of big awards. He first broke big nationally after playing Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival in 2010. Since then he has played almost every festival in the US, and perhaps more impressive played for President Obama at the White House, joining Mick Jagger, B.B. King and other blues icons (video below).
While the comparison I hear most often for Gary Clark Jr. is Stevie Ray Vaughn, he rocks MUCH harder. I personally think he sounds at times like Vernon Reid from Living Colour in his sound, at least in terms of his intensity, often sounding akin to heavy metal. A Boston Globe review of Gary's concert there earlier this week described the heavy sound as 'transformative thunder' and that captures my impression very well. I have been at Grateful Dead concerts when they shook the foundations, and Gary and his band surely achieved that effect last night.
Zapata! (Bill Phelps Photo)
One of the main sources of the "thunder" generated by Gary's band was his guitar player, Zapata!. He opened the show playing a wild two necked electric guitar, with a twelve string on top. Zapata! had a large electronic effects board on the stage in front of him, and at times he configured it to lay down a wall of fuzz and reverb. While they are blurred in the photo, Zapata! wore huge rings on the fingers of his right hand, and I am not sure how he managed to play the guitar at all with so much metal on his fingers. The other members of the band, Johnny Bradley on bass, and Johnny Radelat on drums were equally strong, and the drummer especially looked like he was having a blast playing.
Gary Clark Jr. at The 9:30 Club 11/10/12 (Bill Phelps Photo)
My favorite concerts experiences are when I have the opportunity to hear a talented musician who is on fire, and just exploding in popularity. This certainly describes Gary Clark Jr. right now.
I took these photos with a Canon G10 compact camera. The 9:30 Club does not allow 'professional' cameras, defined as any camera with interchangeable lenses. The G10 takes great photos when there is abundant light. The photos here are well outside the camera's comfort zone.