A Little Alt-Country in Brooklyn: Will Hoge at Bell House

Will Hoge at Bell House, 4.30.09

TLC friend and contributor, Alexis Colvard, caught alt-country rocker, Will Hoge at Brooklyn’s lovely Bell House last week. Read her review and download some tracks below:

Being a native Georgia girl, I’ve long been a fan of Will Hoge’s down-home, gritty, Nashville-infused Southern rock. His concerts never fail to impress, from his growling, passionate vocals to the connection he makes with every audience member. His stop at The Bell House in Brooklyn on 4/30 did not disappoint.

Hoge has a Bruce Springsteen-meets-Hank-Williams vibe, and with songs like, Dirty Little War, This Highway’s Home, and Pocket Full of Change, you might think he’s another run-of-the-mill country western singer. However, his clear influences from Motown and blues music peek out on his studio albums in tunes like The Man Who Killed Love’s Woman, Be Strong, and Draw the Curtains’s When I Can Afford to Lose, and the Hurricane Katrina ode Washed By the Water.

Hoge seems more interested lately in going the sensitive, acoustic, country rocker route, which is fine by his fans–some of whom are passionate enough to sing along at 100-decibel volume and others who would skin those fans for doing so. Welcome to Brooklyn, bitches!

Katie Herzig (best known for her Fritos commercial jingle, Two Hearts Are Better Than One) opened, and her innocent, Feist-y voice pared with country acoustic music and whistling made for a great lead-in to Hoge’s powerful set.

The tone of the main show started out more somber than Hoge’s usual concerts, as he’s still recovering from a terrible scooter accident in August, and had to sit through the whole show. Witnessing his now-limited mobility could have turned the night into one of those fall-of-a-titan moments, but he immediately started the set by cracking jokes and putting the audience at ease. He then proceeded to rock out on his guitar (and later the keyboard) and wail into the mic like the Will we all remembered, kicking ass and taking names all night. Then, to top off the evening, he manned his own merch table and took a picture with every single fan. A true trooper, a great musician, and a class act. His latest studio effort (a follow up to 2007’s Draw the Curtains) will be out on Rykodisc in the Fall.

MP3: Will Hoge – Lover Tonight or Zshare
MP3: Will Hoge – Washed By The Water or Zshare