The previous blurb review of a Greg Laswell performance posted by our sister site, more than adequately defines what it is to see Greg Laswell live. Listening to his music is sufficient in leading the listener into the heart of a Laswell show, and most words that can be rendered by a writer are left grasping to lead a reader into the presence of such an experience. This was true after the quieted set delivered by Greg and his guitar player, Brandon at Portland's Doug Fir Lounge in February and in most ways, continues to be true when attempting to paint a picture of Greg's performance at Eugene's Wow Hall this past weekend. Though this time, it was a bit different.
A full band accompanied Greg and Brandon, transforming his songs from subtly sinking, into hard hitting expressions of emotion. Not able to label one show better than the other... only the word 'different' can be used, and only in its strongest sense. Allowing for moments of the earlier performance's grace by dropping in a few songs played solo by Greg, this Wow Hall set featured drums and bass guitar on many of the songs that made each one more of a journey than in the previous show, culminating in a fantastically varied version of Greg's friendship song 'Comes And Goes (In Waves)'. Beginning the song very much like the Doug Fir performance with only Greg and Brandon; this song transitioned into an anthem by the end, with help from some of the most powerful vocals ever delivered by Greg.
As with his Doug Fir show, Greg continued to connect with the audience through his song descriptions and smartly positioned witticisms. He seemed to feed off the listeners' reactions to his heart filled music. Much evidence derived from the night indicates that Greg seems to show up for life with a great ability to simplify what the masses would complicate. His story telling sums up turmoil in wonderfully impactful lines like "I like how the day sounds through this new song" or " I searched high and low for you and I". His lullaby love song, "Sweet Dream" does so, not with just a singular line, but with everything the song became during Greg's abbreviated writing of the song.
Seven of Greg's songs are featured along with this article and should not be looked upon as a 'best of', but rather a lure into his library which promises to connect with you in one fashion or another. Treat yourself to the exploration.
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