[Concert Review] Rodrigo y Gabriela (2017)

How far off-script can you go? If you’re performing a cover song, do you keep the song strictly intact, or can you quote famous passages and improv the rest? Your answer might help determine how you’ll feel about seeing Rodrigo y Gabriela live. You might be distracted following along with the flamenco guitar duo’s casual interpretations of Metallica and Led Zeppelin covers. How about if that’s unimportant and you’re there to observe pure technical musicianship?

Ryan Sheridan
Sheridan is a radio-friendly singer-songwriter leaning heavily on soft rock ballads. An initially oddball choice. Is he the backup plan? Bring in the wider pop audience to sell more tickets?
He fortunately dropped the façade to reveal guitar chops that are more dynamic than average, although unfortunately, Sheridan doesn’t have the confidence to use more of this guitar skill into his set. He is not an evocative or versatile singer. Concluding his set with an audience singalong with a cliché melody to hum along to brought the audience together, yet didn’t inspire the uniqueness to stand out from the crowd.
With the focus on uninspired pop, his albums might unfortunately only appear in dollar discount bargain bins. If Sheridan were to shift gears to further showcase his guitar skills, or even incorporating Irish melodic sensibilities into his repertoire, he could unquestionably stand out as not just a convenient opening act.
Swag: Maybe with time
Bias: No preconceived notions
Rating: ★★★☆☆ [3/5]

Rodrigo y Gabriela
You might be disappointed if your primary interest is seeing straightforward covers. “We aren’t interested in playing to convention,” Rodrigo said between songs. The resulting focus is more about fun party music than purely musical study.
Their studio albums are more technical in their approach, while their live approach is more about weaving songs into an overall musical narrative where many simple leitmotifs effectively appear throughout the set. That sort of evocative over technical take on flamenco can inspire more accessibility to audiences that might not be as well educated on the topic. After all, if you’re not familiar with this style of music, what better way to get them in than by covers?
This leads into the cover song red flag idea, where performer(s) might perform covers of songs like “Orion” by Metallica and “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin to gain early traction. When done poorly, it’s exploitative, and when done well can introduce audiences to new styles of music.
I fully admit to being in that camp of people that originally heard of the duo by way of their “Orion” cover. Seeing them live has reinvigorated a sense of wanting to explore more flamenco. Their music may probably rotate into my routine writing playlists. I just hazard to say they’re at the point of instantly winning anyone over to their sound.
This was the first leg of their tour.
Maybe they’ll warm up when they reach your town and win you over?
I’d see them again.
Swag: Definitely next time
Bias: Fan for years
Rating: ★★★★☆ [4/5]

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