The Dave Rawlings Machine @ The Showbox In Seattle
Last Sunday I was lucky enough to see the Dave Rawlings Machine tear the house down in Seattle. I was very curious to see how the dynamic was going to play between the musicians on stage , with Gillian Welch seemingly being the only topic of conversation over heard befor the show. A lot of people seemed to be vaguely aware that he was her duet partner , or that the band was made up of Old Crow Medicine Show members-of course no one seemed to really know who the hell Benmont Tench was when he came onstage!!! But, I have a hint after seeing the way everyone handled themselves onstage that they were completely prepared for a lot of peoples preconceptions. Everyone played their part accordingly and passionately and it was reassuring and inspiring to watch.
But, that being said, David Rawlings swallowed the stage whole. He didn’t jump around step on other peoples toes or cut them off , and seemed genuinely at a loss for words when it came time for stage banter-he let his guitar do his talking for him.While the vocals onstage were stellar on everyone’s part , his guitar playing was on a whole other level. I’ve always found his playing interesting and under rated, and would often bring him up talking with other guitards about who we think deserves more recognition-but last Sunday night after witnessing him live for the first time I was in complete shock at how intense and dynamic his playing was. He should be on the cover of every guitar magazine out there. I thoroughly enjoyed the show and would recomend you see them if they get anywhere near your home town.