Amoeba In Store with Theresa Andersson

I've been hearing about Theresa Andersson for the last few weeks from the likes of Kevin Bronson and others and I figured there had to be a reason for the buzz. A brief visit to her myspace page featured music samples and showed video of her performance style that convinced me not to miss her.

My brains were blown back against the inside of my skull on Saturday afternoon, January 17, 2009 at Amoeba in Hollywood when Theresa Andersson took the stage and began her set. I have seen few performers who express the pure joy of performance as powerfully and as ecstatically as this woman.

I couldn't wipe the grin off my face as she amazed me song after song with her astonishing musical abilities and remarkable voice. I especially liked her slide violin. But she can even sing while pounding on the drums.

She loops, plays back and samples prerecorded elements and carefully blends and builds the song before your eyes. It's a style not dissimilar to Andrew Bird or Gangi or Zoe Keating and I have to say it's one of my favorite trends in current music.

Swedish, by way of New Orleans, she plays a kind of funky, bluegrass, New Orleans jazz mix punctuated by her soaring vocals, with a wonderful swaying beat. With an ingratiating stage style and lots of charisma, I can not see how she can avoid becoming a major force in music. I would recommend trying to catch one of her shows at the Hotel Cafe on September 20 and 30, because Theresa Andersson is an enormous talent.

whrabbit