Plugged in acoustic music does not bring to mind the concerts that bring the house down, but, as proved in the Orpheum on September 9, it can be done. The performances of Passenger and opening act Gregory Alan Isakov were both masterfully done, and all the more impressive due to the fact that there was only one performer on stage with a plugged in acoustic guitar.
At the beginning of his set there were few people in the audience who were aware of Isakov, but by the end of his set there was a murmur throughout the crowd asking who had just performed. Isakov is by no means new to the music scene, having released five albums to date with another currently in the post-production phase.
This lack of audience knowledge seems to be more symptomatic of the indie-folk genre rather than being correlated to the volume of music that a single artist can produce. The commitment to the craft of songwriting and production is more important for these artists than commercial success, although, as Isakov pointed out, one of his songs was featured in a Christmas commercial for McDonald’s (“Big Black Car,” which was performed with virtually no distinction between the live and recorded versions).
He also managed to gain a significant amount of crowd support for admitting to never having eaten at a McDonald’s, studying organic farming, and donating all the proceeds from his commercial to supporting small organic farming initiatives.
The opportunity to meet him after the show also proved how grounded he is as a person. Isakov is easy to talk to and has a lot of love for his fans, and when asked what his favourite part about performing in Vancouver was, he responded with the venue, and how he felt lucky to be given the opportunity to perform in such a beautiful setting.
Passenger’s set was equally wonderful, and the masterful weaving of storytelling throughout the set made the whole experience feel truly intimate. It also helped that the audience was there solely for the music. With the silence in the venue it felt like he was performing to just for you.
Passenger, however, ran into the same kind of widespread knowledge issues that befell Isakov, except that in Passenger’s case it was emphasized due the commercial success of “Let Her Go.” This, however, did not seem to phase Passenger as he had resigned himself early on in his career not to chase commercial success, but to make the music that he wanted to make.
So while there were many members of the audience who only knew “Let Her Go,” there was also the thrill of being in a room full of people who made the same musical discovery at the same time. If anyone in the room was not convinced about Passenger’s love of music, the stories that he told about the creation of some of his songs definitely changed their minds. The story that he told about the Australian man who he met in Denmark while busking was particularly moving and created a much deeper meaning to the song “Travelling Alone.”
Passenger and Gregory Alan Isakov are two artists who should not be missed live. The storytelling that they integrate into their sets, along with staying faithful to the indie-folk and singer-songwriter genres, makes their performances intimate and highly nuanced.
