Melissa Ferrick is a goddess. The show she played in the Parish Room at the House of Blues on March 27 was incredible. Ferrick, a singer/songwriter/guitarist performed all original music with her drummer, Bryan, to a less-than-full Parish Room, but she played like she was in front of a packed stadium.
With an audience of about 40, she enchanted this “small, but mighty” primarily female group. One got the feeling she wasn’t just performing on that stage — she was courting each and every person in the room. With such a small audience, Ferrick got a chance to make a connection with everyone there, whether it was through eye contact or verbal exchanges.
Ferrick is an unbelievable performer. As a guitar player, she’s brilliant. She spends half her time fighting with the guitar and the rest of the time making love to it. Seriously. As a singer, she’s even better. Ferrick has an inner Aretha Franklin, and she released this spirit with full force during her performance. She sang with depth, maturity and blew the audience away.
Ferrick is a smallish woman, with short, erratically-styled brown hair and the energy of a 4-year-old. She danced constantly while playing. It was during her between-song banter that the audience got the full effect of her energy.
She would jump from topic to topic, conversing with the audience when she couldn’t remember the name of a movie she was talking about or when she and her drummer were discussing their hair gel woes from earlier that evening.
Ferrick and her drummer played together superbly. It was apparent that few, if any, songs were played in their original form. She improvised constantly, using fx pedals for her guitar and playing incredible and technically challenging solos. Her drummer followed her wherever she went and the effect was seamless.
The music Ferrick plays isn’t just notable because of her performing skills, vast though they may be. Ferrick is an intelligent lyricist, and through her song she discusses simple and difficult relationship issues, the lesbian community and the effect that being a traveling performer has had on her life.
After the show, Ferrick stood outside and chatted with a group of about six avid fans who had waited about half an hour to say hello to their favorite musician. A few women had driven in from Texas and Mississippi to see Ferrick, and she did not disappoint. She took a moment to talk to everyone and was just as much fun in person as she was on stage.
This show is indescribable. The energy Ferrick infused into the small crowd was amazing. She proved it is possible to be not only a spectacular songwriter and guitarist, but also a dynamic and inspiring performer as well.
For tour dates, a full bio and other fun stuff visit www.MelissaFerrick.com.