As the Artpark summer concert series reached its midway point, I was very curious to see Grace Potter perform as she was performing under her own name and not with “The Nocturnals.” Even though the attendance was lighter than a traditional Artpark show (weather was humid and muggy), Potter took the stage at approximately 8:15pm to a crowd ready to dance and be electrified. Potter and her bandmates were up this task as they dished out quite an incredible performance.
Gearing up for a new CD, “Midnight,” to drop on August 14, the band gave us two new tracks, a handful of Grace Potter and & the Nocturnals songs as well as a few covers. If the crowd wasn’t into it at first, they surely were by the 4th song “Medicine.” Potter had everyone singing the chorus and her carefree spirit spread to everyone else by the end of the show. Potter, who not only plays electric guitar, donned an acoustic guitar for one of the new songs to expect on Midnight called “Empty Heart.” For the track ‘Low Road,” Potter was joined by guitarist Benny Yurco. For the next tune she was joined by drummer (also her husband) Matt Burr for the Johnny Cash cover “God’s Gonna Cut You Down.”
Potter is like few other vocalists or front person. She exudes sensuality and dances like no one is watching. She makes you feel like she is one of the crowd and soon you want to move along with her and to the muic. She even stated her job was to “wet the whistle some, right ladies?” as she went into “Loneliest Soul.”
Due to the hot and sticky night, Potter asked everyone to, “let loose of one article of clothing and let the music take you.” This was before the last song of the evening “Hot Summer Nights,” an appropriate song to end with as people started throwing panties and cowboy hats to name a few items. She wore the cowboy hat and picked up the panties and hung them from her organ. You can say she definitely was interactive with the crowd.
Who can take a song like Rod Stewart’s “Do You Think I’m Sexy?” and make it her own? Potter that’s who. She wrapped up the festivities with the sexy and seductive song “Paris (Ooh La La).”
What a show and what a performer. Can’t wait to hear the new disc in its entirety. Better yet, I can’t wait to see Potter and her band come back around to further support ‘Midnight.”
Setlist:
Never Go Back (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Runaway (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Ah Mary (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Empty Heart (new song)
Medicine (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Low Road (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
God’s Gonna Cut You Down (Johnny Cash cover)
Stop the Bus (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Loneliest Soul (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Timekeeper (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Stars (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Biggest Fan (new song)
Noting But The Water (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Hot Summer Night (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Encore:
Apologies (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
Sexy (Rod Stewart cover)
Paris (Ooh La la) (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals song)
We would like to thank Maria Hays from Artpark for her assistance in obtaining credentials so BackstageAxxess can review the show.
