Lindsay Holler & Friends
Wed. Jan. 7
Mercato
Nestled in a cozy corner at the foot of the Market restaurant’s long bar counter, local vocalist Lindsay Holler and a rotation of musical cats croon and swing through two sets of soulful jazz standards (and a few surprise renditions) every Wednesday evening.
When she started “Lindsay Holler & Friends” several months ago, guitarist Bill Carson and bassist Jonathan Gray stood in as the low-volume backing band. They handled a cool mix of material with confidence. Last week, upright bassist Ben Wells and electric pianist Sam Sfirri crammed in on either side of Holler for an enjoyable triple-set.
It just happened to be the final weekly show of the season.
Both Wells and Sfirri play with Holler in the twangy alt-country/pop band Western Polaroids, so a positive degree of cool personal and musical chemistry was evident. They both regularly jam on jazz, funk, and soul instrumentals in the Pulse Trio as well.
Just above the din of clinking cutlery and wine glasses, Holler’s trio glided through a healthy list of antique lounge standards such as the melodic “Lullaby of Birdland,” the Fats Waller-penned tunes “Ain’t Misbehavin'” and “Honeysuckle Rose,” Duke Ellington’s “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” and several other pleasing selections. She stood almost perfectly still, gripping her microphone stand with both hands and singing nearly every line with her eyes closed, only turning her head with sudden twists when she hit the loudest and highest pitched notes. A little Fender keyboard amp and a small P.A. speaker were the only extra gear surrounding the trio. For such a low volume, they managed an impressively big sound — fully rounded, but delicate and articulate.
The weirdest one of the evening had to have been Holler’s totally reworked, sauntering swing version of Guns N’ Roses’ “Mr. Brownstone.” The overly dressy diners had no idea they were tapping their toes to a headbanging song about shooting up. (www.lindsayholler.net) — T. Ballard Lesemann
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