Artist: Xavier Rudd
Venue: Showbox (Seattle, WA)
Date: June 30, 2007)
Opener: Serena Ryder
Xavier Rudd returned to Seattle for a show at the Showbox with Serena Ryder—a perfect musical cocktail for what's been a very hot summer.

The stage at the Showbox is crowded with instruments that rest under covers like trucks on someone's front lawn. We know at some point, someone will come out and ceremoniously reveal one-man-band Xavier Rudd's piles of percussion—gongs, djembes, bells, kick drums, didjeridoos, and even one full traditional drum kit.


For now, though, it's all concealed.

Serena Ryder

In stark contrast, right on time, opening act Serena Ryder strolls onto the stage with no instruments in her hands. She opens her set with an a cappella tune and a voice that knocks the crowd silly. For the next half hour, drawing mostly from her recent release, If Your Memory Serves You Well, she impresses the sold-out crowd.
Ryder's stage presence is impressive and infectious, and her larger-than-life vocals cruise through her introspective folk songs seemingly effortlessly. So rarely does a solo artist fill a whole stage with their musicianship, but Ryder and her songs do so easily; and, when she's done, the queue forming in front of her merchandise table—where she sits autographing CDs—forms quickly and enthusiastically.

Xavier Rudd

Australian singer-songwriter and one-man-band Xavier Rudd has quickly become quite a cult favorite here in the states. The audience at this performance is predominately made up of college kids and young environmentalists, resonding happily to the environmental organizations benefitting from Rudd's tours and music.
Although he makes it onstage later than scheduled, the crowd doesn't mind.

He kicks off his set with crowd favorite, "Fortune Teller," from last year's Food in the Belly. It takes almost no time for the crowd to start its bouncing, twirling, and all-out dancing.

Rudd's rapport with his audience is incredible. They know all the words to all his songs, and seem to be more cheering him on than acting like separate spectators. Pulling mostly from the hugely popular Food in the Belly, and his more recent relese, White Moth (Anti), Rudd's command of his several different instruments is remarkable.

Jumping from reggae to traditional Americana-fuzed folk-rock, Rudd's performances are as impressive, if not more, than his recordings. The audience eats up each moment, dancing hard to tunes like "The Letter" and "Food in the Belly."

For more information on Xavier Rudd's music and tour dates, visit his Web site