Spirits were soaring on the night before Halloween in Williamsburg as some fiery guitar players took different paths to deliver the six string goods at Brooklyn Bowl.
Jonathan Long opened the evening with a restrained acoustic set showcasing his blues/country/gospel influenced sound in a relaxed style. Long would save the electric blazing for later, opening the night by focusing on his newest release Parables of a Southern Man with warm singing and playing as the crowd filtered in.
Headliner Samantha Fish however wasted no time diving into her hard rocking style as her intoxicating performance of modern blues was jaw dropping. Supported by a more stripped down backing band than on recent tours (bass, drums and organ only), Fish delivered scorching lead runs and rhythmic shakes that had the crowd hip swaying and singing along. Few who witnessed Fish’s set could argue against her being one of the strongest guitarists on the scene today.
“Crowd Control” found Fish stomping around the stage with booming power as she let the riffs fly. Tunes from her dynamite new release Faster were the bulk of the set as Fish seems confident in her command both vocally and on her phalanx of guitars, blasting out the chunky riffs and blistering solos during a blazing, extended “Twisted Ambition”.
Older songs also were displayed as “Kill or Be Kind” featured strong organ work as well as more revved up soloing from Fish, while the slinky “Don’t Say You Love Me” and the sultry “Chills and Fever” slithered around the stage. “Bulletproof” ended her impressively strong set with a focus on her slide work on the cigar box guitar, injecting hill country blues into the Brooklyn night.
The encore found opener Long join Fish to deliver dueling wicked guitar interplay on the seasonally perfect “I Put A Spell On You” Screaming Jay Hawkins cover. The players wrapped up the night with spooky vibes as Fish sang with all of the passion and power of a true rock star owning the stage.
