Olympia’s all-ages club, The Northern, was packed to capacity for the Led to Sea/Thao and Mirah show. The night started off with Alex Guy from Led to Sea asking for the tall people to move to the back and let the short folks stand up front. I’m one of the shortest people I know, so I happily skipped up front toting my camera.
Led to Sea was fantastic! I can’t wait to see Alex play again. She brought Paris Hurley, a fashionably dressed and musically gifted violin player, and Jherek Bischoff, who set up his stand-up bass to the side, among the crowd, too burly to fit on the venue’s tiny stage. Alex and Paris would close their eyes and sway with their instruments, lost in the music. Many members of the crowd closed their eyes as well, focusing on the clear tones of the viola and Alex’s beautiful voice. Alex used the loop pedal throughout the performance to make her and Paris’s instruments sound like a mini orchestra. I’m sure they won over many new fans that evening! I can’t think of a better act to warm up for Thao and Mirah.
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Thao and Mirah are such a fabulous duo! Apart, they’re both wonderful, but together, they’re the even better. Two-thirds of Led to Sea as well as a drummer supported the pair as they played many of the tracks off their recently released album. One of my favorites was “How Dare You,” in which their voices dance playfully together. I loved the way crowd danced a little during that track. The audience also loved their rendition of Thao with the Get Down Stay Down’s “Bag of Hammers” towards the end of the set. Everyone joined in at the chorus with Thao, making her smile.
During “Teeth,” Mirah hopped back behind the drum kit and for three minutes straight she and the drummer did body percussion, stomping and doing schoolyard hand claps. When she wasn’t doing body percussion or playing guitar, Mirah danced at the mic in her form-fitting black outfit, swaying her hips and moving her feet, looking completely adorable. In between songs Mirah chatted about Olympia, since she’s an ex-resident, marveling at the fireplace store down the street that had burnt down. She used to live across the street from it, and decided with a laugh that it had burned to the ground because they were storing logs in the back. During the banter she and Thao gushed about the dinner they had eaten at Trinacria, a local Italian restaurant, that evening. I was jealous.
When Thao wasn’t discussing her delicious sounding meal — and the restaurant owner’s beautiful car — she was extremely passionate, immersed in every second of every song. That woman’s got skills — it’s like she was born with a guitar strapped to her! When she wasn’t playing guitar, she’d grab a drumstick or two and help out on percussion, using her whole body to beat the drums, her long black hair fanning out as she flung herself around. I loved watching her work the slide guitar, as well. The guitar she used as a slide was brown and scuffed up, with a patch of duct tape on the back. It looked like it had seen a lot of love.
Speaking of love, the bond between the two performers/friends was plainly obvious. They never missed a beat, and looked at each other with laughter in their eyes during silly moments — there was a warmth on that stage that you don’t always get from road-weary performers. The van will beat you down, but Thao and Mirah looked fresh as a couple of daisies. They put on a fabulous show.
Check out some exclusive video from the show: