Melissa Etheridge kicked off the evening at 5:12 with her upbeat blues song “Bring Me Some Water” after asking the crowd if they were ready to rock. My jaw dropped when she began the first song. She showed such confidence and the 12-string guitar sounded so full, as if an entire band was playing too. She was initially sporting a fedora, which flew off when she started jammin’. She made a comment that it was her first show to take place at 5pm and she enjoyed it because the crowd had more energy. There were about a dozen guitars off all types lined up on the stage accompanied by a piano and several lava lamps. The items on stage produced a very chill vibe. About half of the guitars were 12 strings, which in my own opinion are much more challenging to play than regular 6 string guitars.
For the next song of the set, “Yes I Am,” she utilized a loop sequencer and accompanied herself with a backup track, as she was the only one on stage. Somebody from the crowd screamed out and the microphone picked up the scream while Melissa was recording a loop. For the rest of the song, however many measures repeated, you could hear the fan’s squeal. Melissa took requests from the crowd and a fan held up a sign and then she performed “Silent Legacy” at the fan’s request. I was curious about the piano at the beginning of the show, but the question was answered when she walked to the piano and began singing the broken hearted ballad “The Letting Go.” She used the loop pedal on almost every song, including percussion. Melissa would layer her guitars and solo on top of them, notably during the bridge of “The Different.” This included the use of a mini 12-string electric guitar that I was unfamiliar with. Melissa writes songs in the car, “Occasionally,” she said as she announced that she was on the way back home from work and wrote the beat during that drive.
Several years ago, Melissa Etheridge was diagnosed with breast cancer. Today, she’s cancer free and wrote a profound and inspiring cancer anthem called “I Run For Life” which she performed on The Late Show with David Letterman in 2005. While interacting with the crowd, a fan in the front road confessed that she too has breast cancer and Melissa told her to be strong and that she will see her here in the same spot next year. Melissa Etheridge announced that she has a new album coming out and debuted a new single from it called “Take My Number.” A few popular songs later, Melissa took the audience by surprise when she pulled out her iPhone and took a selfie with the crowd.
By the end of the show, when Melissa was playing all of her most popular songs, everyone was out of their seats. Mostly everybody was down by the front of the stage dancing and singing along. The show was just short of two hours long. Melissa Etheridge performed with great intensity and had tremendous stage presence throughout the entire evening. She really taught me a lot about stage presence and performing.
Setlist:
Bring Me Some Water
Yes I Am
Silent Legacy
Don’t You Need
The Letting Go
The Different
Occasionally
I Run For Life
Take My Number (new song)
Come To My Window
Shadow Of A Black Crow
Weakness In Me
I Want To Come Over
Brave and Crazy
I’m The Only One
Encore
Like The Way I Do
Photos by Gus Griesinger. We would like to thank Tony Astran from the Seneca Allegany Casino for the credentials to review the show.
