Fellow Lo-Downer, Derek Dragotis, happened to catch Teddy Thomspon and his band Poundcake at Rockwood Music Hall last night and sent us his notes from the show. If you’ve seen something you liked lately (or didn’t like), send us your thoughts, here.
All the low-key hipster banter and deflection in the world can’t camouflage Teddy Thompson’s star quality or his soulful voice when he opens his mouth to sing. A true artist’s signature was quite visible throughout Mr. Thompson and bandmates’ (Jeff Hill and Ethan Eubanks) set last night, which was completely comprised of cover tunes from the golden age of rockabilly and classic country songs from generations gone by. With a lot of casual, genuinely funny ad libs between each song, Poundcake still managed to achieve a musical sincerity that was greatly appreciated by the crowd, due in large part to Thompson’s singular voice and remarkable phrasing. Highlight: Poundcakes’s cover of “Why Can’t He Be You,” the classic Patsy Cline tune, rendered with a beautiful sensitivity by all three band members; it proved Mr. Thompson’s legacy goes back quite a bit further than his folk hero parents, to one of the greatest American voices of the last century. Hopefully someone was recording last night!
