Near Hollywood and Highland in an intimate setting on the contrary of traffic heavy Los Angeles, three distinctively different bands performed at what was decorated as a personal living room.
The crowd gathered around with BYOB favorites on rugs or couches surrounding the artist’s set up. There was no stage or green room- here everyone was on the same boat… well, on the same carpet. And it was an absolute eye-opener and down to earth type of music night.
Seattle based folk band Motopony opened the evening creating a one-on-one atmosphere by immediately captivating the audience’s attention with both their harmonizing band’s vocals and use of instruments.
At a point during their set, the lead singer Daniel Blue asked the audience to close their eyes during his next song- and we actually did. One by one most of the crowd, whether sitting down or standing up, closed their eyes as he filled the room with resonating vocals. He took us to a bohemian type of setting through his vocals and the band’s music using only our sense of hearing. Towards the end of their set, guitarist and vocalist Nate Daley shared with the audience a piece of advice that underlined the key theme throughout the night of using less technology in our lives. He suggested that we should “connect each other in the human way,” rather than using devices. Throughout the rest of the evening, the audience (myself included) followed his advice and denied the urge to check cellphone notifications.
Following Motopony, came our empowering woman of the night Ceci Bastida who added Latin flavor to the night. She sang three of her personal songs including, “Ven” a song that was inspired by her daughter, and “Una Vez Mas.”
After the show, Bastida was kind enough to answer a few questions about her involvement with Sofar Sounds and about her next project.
Q: This was your second time performing at Sofar Sounds, how is it different from other events?
Ceci Bastida: What I love about Sofar Sounds is that people are there because they wanna listen to music. There is nothing else, just get together and listen. People are paying full attention to you and your music and that’s pretty amazing. In a weird way it’s more nerve-wracking than bigger shows.
Q: Anything in particular that you love about the event?
Ceci Bastida: Just the closeness between the audience and the musicians. I also love that I get to know different bands that do very different music than what I do. Everyone is very supportive and it’s just a fun event.
Q: Any new music in the works?
Ceci Bastida: I’m working on some songs with a few guests. One with Aloe Blacc, another one with this amazing producer/rapper from South Africa called Spoek Mathambo, and a track with a Chilean singer called Mariel Mariel. All of these people are super talented, so being able to collaborate with them has been an amazing experience for me.
Fool’s Gold, a five-piece band from Los Angeles, closed the night with the crowd on their feet as we danced to their Caribbean-style tunes. It was a hot and energetic environment by the time these musicians wrapped up and helped Sofar Sounds call it a night.
What a different and much needed intimate (and cellphone-less) night in fast-paced Los Angeles. Thanks for having us, Sofar Sounds!
Photos by: Jeanette Hernandez, photo-jaye
