Trevor Hall

On Monday, July 9th, I have the pleasure of seeing Trevor Hall in concert at the Jefferson Theater in Charlottesville, Va. A few years ago I found Trevor Hall through a friend who played his music so much that his sound became the anthem to my summer. "Unity," a song that many may know, features Matisyahu and is a reggae/rap driven powerhouse. This is probably his most recognizable song, and rightfully so. Trevor Hall's music is reggae influenced and very much embraces the Rastafarian ideals. When he hit the stage, a smaller white boy which crazy long dreadlocks, he immediately jumped into the first song. His voice was draped in reverb and delay, which I would normally not be a fan of because it tends to be a tool of compensation, however, it worked so very well for Hall's voice.  With four musicians on stage, the band was able to not only reproduce record quality music, they often outdid the recorded songs. My favorite example of this was with his song "Lime Tree." This is a slower, more relaxed tune (with reggae influence, of course). As with ever other song, his voice was spot on, the instruments sounded beautiful, and the room was captivated. But just before the first lyric was sung, Hall invited Colbie Caillat to the stage to sing backup. This song took on a brand new feeling without losing its identity  and I could not have asked for more. One more thing that I enjoyed about Hall's stage persona was his lack a needless, mindless talk. Many of his songs blended into the next without a break in between and when he did speak it was with purpose. Sure, a few jokes went back and forth with the audience, but most of his set was some fantastic music and that's what I like (hell, that's what I pay for, not a monologue). There was one thing that did leave me confused: for a white kid from South Carolina, Trevor Hall sure has a heavy Jamaican accent...If Trevor Hall is coming to your town, grab the $15, burn some incense, find your Rastafarian beanie, and head out to the show...worth every penny.
Any bands you want to recommend? Live performance? Write me and I will post it on the blog!
Much love,
Eric