Low Cut Connie Live at the High Watt – Nashville, Tennessee – September 12, 2017, as part of Americana Fest
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
Electric, dynamic, and breath taking somewhat describes the performance of Low Cut Connie this evening. Those powerful words are the closest I can get to explain the energy and mood of their performance. To get a true picture of their stage show, you MUST see them live. There are six members of this outfit (formerly five) and to say they captivate the crowd is an understatement of the highest order. They kick more ass than an MMA fighter.
Low Cut Connie has distilled genres such as blues, gospel, soul, rhythm and blues, and boogie woogie and broken them down to their purest form: rock and roll. The band has a very unique construct: lead singer and piano player Adam Weiner, lead guitarist and backing vocalist James Everhart, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Will Donnelly, bass player Lucas Rinz, tambourine player and co vocalist Saundra Williams, and Larry Scotton on drums. These six members make enough beautiful noise to fill a stadium. Shaundra spent seven years singing with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings. Street cred for sure.
Let’s get back to the piano. Low Cut Connie takes this behemoth to every show. Shondra is its name, named after a dancer at the Cleremont Lounge in Atlanta. This is no ordinary piano. It also doubles as a piece of gymnastic equipment as Adan and other band members use it to climb, stretch, and contort while they are playing. Like I said, you have to see it to believe it.
Adam and company know how to engage a crowd. And it isn’t contrived, either. It is pure and spontaneous. At the end of the performance, the guitar player got up on the piano and took a flying leap onto the stage on his knees and proceeded to arch his back, without missing a note. That was completely unscripted. Even though the stage show is amazing, it all comes back to the music and all of the pieces and parts working together like a well oiled machine.You can’t have one component without the other and Low Cut Connie has it all with some to spare.
The set was limited to 45 minutes, but the crowd and the band were ready for more. But them’s the rules. The Connies were able to play roughly ten songs, including two rockers off their new album Dirty Pictures (Part 1). Dirty Water is one of the scorchers they unleashed on the eager crowd. It starts off like Bang A Gong by T Rex, but it doesn’t stay there. It veers quickly into straight ahead rock and roll. This number really got the crowd going. Revolution Rock N Roll is another flaming hot number that was well received. These guys know how to get the most out of themselves and the audience.
