Rarely do I come away from a show where I'm fully engaged and wanting to discuss the opener to the extent of the headliner. Thats not to say I don’t enjoy them, they’re usually the perfect “appetizer” for what’s in store for the rest of the evening. Ironically enough, the first time I shot Indigo De Souza opening for Lucy Dacus (on her couch tour) she left me excited to go home and dig deeper into her music. This time around is a different story, two weeks fresh from the release of her third record, All of This Will End and have had many listens through to the point of looking forward to seeing her with this fresh perspective. Out of excitedness I looked into her openers Sluice, fellow North Carolinians whose music is like a musical landscape painting of experiences and philosophical musings.
I was instantly enamored and couldn’t get enough of what I could find wanting more and more and grateful to know they were coming through town soon. Having the added bonus of getting time with Justin Morris (aka Sluice) I had an opportunity to hear more about his music and the inspiration behind the name. If you haven’t Googled it yet by the way, a sluice is a channel controlled at its head by a moveable wooden or metal barrier or gate that allows water to flow under it. (Thanks, Wikipedia!) Almost similarly to the band’s name they eased us into their set with an extended version of “Ostern” allowing the music to flow and seep into the audience, it felt both paradoxically controlled yet organic and really beautiful. There's a certain familiarity with the way Morris sings that’s soothing and eerily reminiscent of listening to Uncle Remus tales as a kid as well as a hint of Willie Dunn (Canadian folk-musician who focused a lot of his work on indigenous people) Theres a hint of Willie Dunn, Canadian folk-musician who focused a lot of his work on indigenous people. Like the length of recently released album, Radical Gate, which clocks in at nearly 27 minutes and understandably its the nature of an opener’s set but left me wanting to hear more. The biggest downfall of the evening were the audience members who were obviously there riding the current wave of popularity of De Souza’s music (rightfully so) who were selfishly chattering casually louder that made it distracting enough for indigo to come out and ask politely to respect her and allow her to listening to her friend’s set in peace..I thought that was an honest and beautiful sentiment. I highly recommend heading over to bandcamp and dig a little deeper into his music.
In high school I was a B average by the skin of my teeth, primarily because I couldn’t exert the same amount of energy and focus on school work as I preferred to do when making art. It’s taken me a long to to accept that aspect of myself and see it as an asset rather than as a liability. So much exertion on trying to fit into an expected mold and have greater more realistic aspirations that make art. There is something relatable in Indigo De Souza’s work and three albums in something inspiring of her creating this presence both visually/musically. She has this contagious energy and passion about herself that gravitates between honest, vulnerable and strong that’s contagious and makes you want to dance and sing along with her.
She seems confident yet shy and mostly like she allows her music to speak for her when onstage from what I can tell not that she is shy but more so intentional and focused and very gracious for the opportunity to share her art and feel the love for it. I think it takes a lot in general for her to go to the vulnerable place day in day out and share hurt parts of herself with others but at the same time relieving to see an audience embrace her words and music and identify with some of the hard subject matter she addresses in her songs. She also has a wisdom and experience beyond her years that’s blunt fully kindred for adults who maybe experienced similar things as she narrates in her songs but didn’t have the voice to speak up for themselves.
Around the midway point in her chorus of "Always" De Souza wails loudly and full of fury that echoes through all my insides and every ounce of emotion in it is felt. She asks afterwards seemingly wiping tears from her eyes “how do you get all the emotions out, we’ve got to do it some way” and she clearly is in a healthy way. I’ll reiterate her humility to be able to own her emotions in that moment is refreshing as many artists would deny them or play them off as part of the act. I think most folks of all ages will understand the “Ratatouille” references when the critic took his first bite and was instantly transported back to a childhood memory, I felt that similar transport back to my teenage years now both times Ive seen Indigo live. Something about her sound is reminiscent of a sort of grunge heaven consisting of a cross between L7 + Luscious Jackson and Nirvana + Porno for Pyros, so much so I get chills thinking about it again.
That youthful sentiment comes out in her performance as well as she playfully alternates between playing her guitar in songs to setting it down and jumping and dancing around stage and singing (insert my girl dad perspective). I find a warmness in my heart seeing the passion she exerts onstage. Many of the experiences and emotions I witness from my 17 year old daughter on a regular were beautifully exhibited that evening in a bittersweet fashion. She introduced the song, “Losing” inspired by a time when she and friends grew apart, then quickly following with a resumed confidence and a catchy guitar hook and a Cobain-esque drawl in “Wasting Your Time” Hitting my personal favorite point of the show, as she sang “What Are We Gonna Do Now” I think Indigo is the modern day embodiment of June Carter-Cash with a strength and certainty when delivering her lyrics while emitting an honest and vulnerable sensation in her words. From song to song in this case, but much like my aforementioned teenage daughter the overall mood and tonality spanned the gamut of emotions in a colorful kaleidoscope manner. She is trailblazing her way emotionally through her music, building a connection with her community of followers and something my own teenage self wish I had the confidence to do but am grateful daughter have Indigo De Souza to look up to.
Sluice Setlist:
Ostern
Ceturion
Fourth of July
Acts 9:3
Ratchet Strap (new song)
Production/Delivery
New Leicester
Mill
Indigo de Souza Setlist:
How I Get Myself Killed
You Can Be Mean
Bad Dream
All of this Will End
Darker Than Death
Smog
17
Parking Lot
Always The Water
Losing
Sick in the Head
Wasting Your Time
What Are We Gonna Do Now
Not My Body
Younger and Dumber
Kill Me
Encore:
Real Pain
