Back in the days before social networking and the Internet ruled the world, Vanity Fair would insert a free CD in the pages of its annual music issue. Now those were days before musicians willingly gave tracks away for free, so you frequently assumed that the music on those CD's was free for a reason (like it wasn't very good). But against my better judgement I popped the CD into the car radio one week during a mind numbing commute and started listening. That's the first time I heard "Home."
Something about that soulful shuffle grabbed me and pulled me in. When I got to the office, I quickly popped out the disc to check the name of the artist -- Marc Broussard. I filed the information away in my brain with every intention of looking online for more of his music. Then I got busy at work and forgot about it.
Fast forward a few weeks, and I was on a business trip watching VH-1 and getting ready for work in the morning when heard the first strains of "Home." I turned to watch the video and got the shock of my life. When I first heard "Home" if you had asked what I thought Marc looked like just based on his voice, I would have said a heavy set black man in his late 40's. So imagine my surprise to see a dirty blonde, green eyed guy in his 20's singing good old fashioned soul music with a driving beat.
Then I was intrigued, picked up his first album Carenco at Tower Records, and heard that voice work magic on some pop music too. I've bought every album Marc Broussard has released since, but I've never seen him live until now.
Marc pulled a super classy move and came out to introduce the first act. Chic Gamine is a quartet based out of Winnipeg, Canada singing four party harmony with little else backing them but drums and a keyboard. Each of the ladies sings lead on different songs, and they sing in English AND French. They were unlike anything I've heard recently and are on my second look list starting NOW.
Next up was Matt Hires. He was one of the artists on the Mayercraft Carrier 2, and he's had a couple of minor hits. For the most part, he makes pleasant, unremarkable pop guitar music -- kind of a John Mayer lite without the guitar mojo. I felt a little sorry for him following Chic Gamine because they were so amazing his set felt like a bit of a letdown. Or you could call it musical palette cleanser before the main course.
One danger in knowing an artist's music too well is having lofty expectations when you see them live for the first time. This show a little frustrating for that reason. It was the first show of Marc's current West Coast tour and his new record was officially released the same day, so he had a few things on his mind. Technically, there were numerous problems with his guitar pedals and cables, which he even commented on as "first show issues." I wasn't impressed with the sound mix, and I don't think it was the club set-up. At points there was way too much bass, or the vocals were buried behind rest of the band.
But for all the lows, there were more than enough highs to make up for it. Marc shone most brightly on uptempo rockers like "Only Everything" and "Lucky" where he ditched his guitar and focused on singing and acting every bit the experienced front man. On most of the songs from Carencro, the crowd sang along happily. In the middle of the show, Marc did a solo acoustic section highlighted by the lovely ballad "Evangeline Rose" and enjoyed himself so much he waved the band off and did several more songs alone. Throughout the set, Chic Gamine carried back-up vocal duties beautifully.
On the whole, it was still a great show. Marc is a charismatic and passionate performer and he gave the crowd their moneys worth during his 2 hour set. I'd buy a ticket and see him again tomorrow if I could. Here is the set list, along with the album names for each song. Marc's music is definitely worth a listen if you're not already familiar.
"Rocksteady" - Carencro
"Save Me" - Carencro
"The Beauty of Who You Are" - Carencro
"Bleeding Heart" - Marc Broussard (2011)
"Only Everything"- Marc Broussard (2011)
"Lucky"- Marc Broussard (2011)
"Come Around" - Carencro
"Could You Believe - Marc Broussard- EP
"Yes Man" - Marc Broussard (2011)
"Let It All Out" - Marc Broussard (2011)
"Evangeline Rose" - Keep Coming Back
"Come In From the Cold" - Keep Coming Back
"Let Me Leave" - Carencro
"The Wanderer" - Carencro
"Let Me Do It Over" - Marc Broussard (2011)
"Home"- Carencro
****
Encore
"Hard Knocks" - Keep Coming Back
"Eye on the Prize" - Marc Broussard (2011)
"I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know - SOS
To learn more about Marc Broussard, including dates for his current tour, click here.
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