Communion NYC April

The temps are warming up and so is Communion NYC, who returned to Rockwood Music Hall this month with another killer lineup. This time, John Splithoff started things off in Stage 1, with a powerful and soulful voice that I wasn’t expecting. Armed with a slew of well-written verses, John also had a few surprises up his sleeve. First, he brought along a talkbox, and used it better than 99% of the acts I’ve seen, distorting his voice just enough to add another texture to the song. Then, if that wasn’t enough, he had serious guitar chops. He traded licks effortlessly with the other guitarist in the band without blinking an eye.

John Splithoff

Next door, Liza Anne warmed the crowd up with introspective folk music. While solitary on stage, an admittedly awakward on stage, it served to further endear her to the audience. Before long, she found her stride, and amongst her original tunes was a wild card – a cover of Outkast’s “Hey Ya,” that she made all her own. If anyone was doubtful if it would go over well, they needed to leave their doubts at the door. Liza Anne didn’t fall into the original sing-songy, dance along version of the song that had us shaking it like a Polaroid, but instead, the lyrics took on the somber nature of her voice, quavering with emotion.

Liza Anne

The Rockwood crowd welcomed Ben Talmi and he wasted little time assaulting everyone with a powerful voice. His music was upbeat with electronic flourishes, all helping move the night along at a steady pace.

Ben Talmi

As I walked back to the stage next door, Reserved For Rondee was well underway. Lead singer Trevor Vaughn had tons of energy and was quite a character onstage, complete with balancing on the stage barrier. He actually reminded me a lot of Zach Galifinakis in a supremely entertaining way. He had amazing stage presence and both he and the rest of the band had tons of charisma. When I found out that 4 of the band members have acting backgrounds, it all made sense. But that doesn’t mean that they are all for show. They had great music and easily won the spot of my favorite band of the night.

Reserved For Rondee

Young Statues continued the night with uptempo indie-rock that I can never seem to get enough of. Catchy choruses provided ample opportunity for impromptu sing-alongs that made me wish that summer were already in full swing.

Young Statues

The legendary Willie Watson, formerly of Old Crow Medicine Show, played bluegrass, and packed Stage 2 to overflowing in a manner of minutes. His songs were easy to sing along to and unexpectedly hilarious in some parts. Willie had a very easygoing demeanor and his set just seemed to fly by all too quickly. I hope I get to see him again in the near future.

Willie Watson

Next up, The Henry Millers was a band that I was lucky enough to catch at a previous show, and they still put on a great, upbeat performance. As the last act on Rockwood’s stage 1, they gave their all, rocking out until they had nothing left.

The Henry Millers

Squeezing back into Stage 2, large white backdrops were being set up along the back wall of the stage. In all my years of visiting this venue, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone put up any sort of decoration. Corbu was an all out assault on our senses, with projections of images and various abstract designs, which complimented their equally abstract, freeform music. Heavy synths made it easy to get swept up into their sound. I found myself listening to their music the next day with the same easy going feeling. Funny enough, I was reminded of the movie Tron while listening and watching. It was very 80’s in the best way.

Corbu

Finally, the last band of the night, Brothertiger, delivered their set dangerously close to midnight. The crowd had thinned out a bit but they didn’t skimp at all on their performance. A lot more synth sounds, but they managed to distinguish themselves with layered samples, crisp drums and fantastic melodies.