After three years away, the WFUV benefit concert Holiday Cheer returned to the Beacon Theatre on a warm and rain-soaked Tuesday night on December 6th to help support the publicly funded station. Host, Anthony Mason of CBS delivered a brief thank you to the fans/supporters and a welcome to the gorgeous Beacon Theater before ushering on the first act.
Brooklyn’s SaySheShe began the festivities with their brand of the electro-spiced retro soul as the septet’s three frontwomen (Nya Gazelle Brown, Piya Malik, Sabrina Mileo Cunningham) let the sweet falsetto vocals flow. Sturdy funk, with the added flute, kicked up for “Forget Me Not” while electro keys, trumpets, and sax pumped the band’s disco-driving “NORMA” which was a highlight of the group’s brief opening set.
With very little delay the young blues rising star, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram took the stage with keys bass, and drums in support, but the spotlight shone brightly on the large and in charge front man. He began ripping riffs right from the start of “She Calls Me Kingfish” and didn’t stop until the end of his set with “Long Distance Woman” as the phenom captivated the crowd. “Empty Promises” took on a melancholy tone while the clear highlight of the night was “Red House”.
For the classic Jimi Hendrix cover the group welcomed out Vernon Reid to duel with Kingfish on guitar and the resulting solos were the highlight of the whole night. The two fantastic axe men traded licks and smiles as the friends kept raising the bar higher and higher.
After a brief intermission Lucius took the stage and the indie folk quintet let their light acoustic breezes and strong harmonies waft over the Beacon Theater. Opener “Dusty Trails” showed off the huge vocal range of co-front women Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig, who sang tightly facing each other in mirror ball outfits that radiated. The group’s cover of Gerry Rafferty’s “Right Down The Line” transported the audience back to Laurel Canyon in the 70’s while set closer “Woman” soared before a blown microphone forced the lead vocalists to end the night “Floating Away” symbolically arm in arm.
Austin, Texas indie rockers Spoon displayed all their top-notch assets during the just under an hour headlining set, as they opened with the catchy as hell, building groove of “Wild”. “Fitted Shirt” bordered on heavy metal with a blistering three-guitar attack before the band shifted gears seamlessly into the pop rock of “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb”.
“The Hardest Cut” brought the Texas rock and ZZ Top influence while “My Mathematical Mind” delivered echoes and huge crescendos; Britt Daniel ate up his frontman role, dancing to the front during the stage during the tune resulting in a set highlight. The group was fully clicking through the spacey flow of “Lucifer on the Sofa” before the Garth Hudson-like electro-keys solo which dove into a chaotically excellent version of “The Underdog”.
The dance rock of “Got Nuffin” paired perfectly with the funky strutting of “I Turn My Camera On” before the swirling keys and drum breaks highlighted “Inside Out”. The group started and abruptly stopped “Rent I Pay” before being assured they had time to play the closing song before the show ended promptly at eleven, wrapping up a well-played night of music and supporting a great radio station, NYC’s WFUV.
