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BRANDI CARLILE IN CONCERT:
Alt-country sweetheart Brandi Carlile has crowned Billboard's Top Folk Albums chart twice since her 2005 debut, and it's easy to see why as she performs her heart-rending tunes in concert. Carlile is a world-class belter, and the perfect way her voice cracks when she goes big makes visceral tunes like "The Story" and "The Eye" all the more powerful. Country and folk are squarely in her wheelhouse, but she also dabbles in styles as diverse as rock, R&B, and blues, making for a dynamic concert experience anchored by her elegant songwriting and emotive voice. Whether she's performing songs from 2015's The Firewatcher's Daughter or making jaws drop with her soaring cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", Carlile never fails to impress ticket buyers with her poise, gorgeous voice, and good-natured stage presence.
BACKGROUND SNAPSHOT:
Brandi Carlile was born and raised in rural Washington state, where she began performing with her mother and brother at age eight. She taught herself to play guitar, and by her teens she was penning her own songs and singing backup for an Elvis impersonator. By her twenties she was performing in Seattle's music scene with her twin brothers, and in 2004 she signed with Columbia Records. Her self-titled 2005 debut topped Billboard's Folk Albums chart, introducing fans to her powerful voice and heart-on-sleeve songwriting. She teamed up with legendary producer T Bone Burnett for her 2007 sophomore album The Story, with stellar results -- the album peaked at No. 10 on the rock charts and scored a breakthrough hit with its title track. Since then Carlile has toured extensively and released four more acclaimed albums including 2011's Live at Benaroya Hall with the Seattle Symphony and 2015's The Firewatcher's Daughter.
Encore
Brandi Carlile is a talent that only comes along once in a lifetime. Her musical gifts, stage presence, grace and authenticity make her one of my all time favorites. The venue was also absolutely stunning. I would do it again in a heartbeat.
Brandi is an exceptional artist, musician, and creator of generous spaces. Unlike other concerts where the show is largely a display of creativity, entertainment, and/or musical prowess, these seemed to pale in comparison to the positive, generative, uplifting, and profoundly unifying weekend Brandi masterfully created all weekend long. It was like she was bringing out the best in us all. She is a true convener of the best humans and has this extraordinary way of using her INSANE talent and massive platform to constantly point to others. Despite her best efforts, she remained the absolute star and center of it all. 5 stars seems like a pithy response to Brandi's show.
Fantastic concert. She was an amazing collaborator and MC at the Joni Jam and she and the Highwomen were so woven together in their harmonies, energies and connections with the band and crowd that it was truly unrepeatable - truly once in a lifetime concerts!!
Amazing, once in a lifetime show. So grateful to have been there.
Best concert ever. Kudos to Brandi et al. The Gorge is a beautiful theatre but was terribly unorganized. From the time we parked until we got to our reserved seats was two hours. Too many lines, poor signage.
She had amazing stage energy and expresses such kindness and heart to others. Her excitement is contagious. Her voice is spectacular especially with the wonderful acoustics of the Gorge. She brought on some great special guests Sarah McLachlan, Annie Lennox, Brandi Clark; and amazing musicians particularly the string players. I loved everything about it!
Not only was Brandi her usual cheerful self and an amazing soulful singer (not to mention, fricking amazing human being), but the surprise special guests were out of this world…with Annie Lennox and Sarah MacLachlan!! And warm up singers Allison Russell and Marcus Mumford were lovely as well. I didn’t know much about either before the show, so it was nice getting to know them.
The show was a once-in-a-lifetime event, so going on to describe it here would only torture those who weren't there. At least it seems they filmed so there should be a release at some point if you missed it, but as Brandi said on IG, "If you were there, you were there." Although I do hate the constant increases in ticket prices, it is at least comforting to see where some of that money has gone in all the improvements and upgrades to the Gorge over the years since Live Nation took over. It's become a very pleasant overall experience when years ago you had to "tolerate" the overall experience for the amazing view and acts. It's now easy to get in and out, the adds of vendors, paving, restrooms and other upgrades have made it all much easier. Granted, the two recent times I've been I've camped in the extremely expensive, but also super convenient RV Gold Lot so I haven't had to deal with traffic in/out, but even that seemed more reasonable than I remember in the past. Food and drink lines moved very quickly, at least at the top of the bowl, and while of course overpriced, not any more than Climate Pledge or TMobile for sports or concerts. All-in-all if you can afford the ticket prices and if you're really fortunate, can afford a Gold camping ticket on top, you will have a very nice time. Again, the costs are astronomical and I'm not sure where TM/LN stands with giving acts their fare share these days, but at least they put some money back into this historic venue to give it MUCH needed upgrades and improvements that really do make for a better experience.
I knew Joni Mitchell was going to sing, but her backup singers were the incredible Annie Lennox and Sarah McLachlin just to name a couple!!! It was the best ever because we were totally surprised!!
The show was incredible, a dream of a lifetime. However being on a cane and needing to use the ADA was challenging. Mine is a temporary issue but for those who need assistance, the 2 hour wait, standing, at the ADA and the wait for the shuttles in, and the lack of any real assistance in any way, created real concerns for those who needed more. You need to make this venue's accessibility support much better. We were left to walk out, no shuttles after, and I know many others were as well. Truly unacceptable in this day and age.
Ticket purchase and entrance to venue without a hitch. This iconic lineup was a dream of a lifetime. There for Joni mostly but attended all 3 days. Sound and visuals were excellent, performances were memorable. Joni, Tanya and Annie Lennox were stand outs as consummate performers like they’ve been doing this for 50 years. The Gorge should work on protecting attendants from the heat while in line and improve parking logistics but either way, I’ll be back.
This show was an amazing, once in a lifetime show! Brandi was incredible, as always, and the Joni Jam was…I’m still reeling! Overall great experience. My only constructive feedback is that more signage approaching the venue / campgrounds and a bit more organization would’ve gone a long way (eg signage for which line you’re actually in and how to get where you’re going), as well as more resources dedicated to ADA/accessibility for those who needed it!
Overall it was an epic experience, with truly inspiring performances in the most visually stimulating environments. However, it felt that there was not enough venue/logistical support and staffing, including not having people to direct to specific locations or guide to lawn seating areas. Particularly frustrating was the parking organization at the end of the night, it took exceedingly long to get out as the people "directing" traffic were very young and disorganized, which isn't what you want after a very long day. All in all we had an excellent time and enjoyed the experience, just hope that in the future the organizers can ensure adequate and professional staffing. Thanks!
Literally no words or pictures could capture what we experienced this weekend. The only drawback was the people, not their fault, that we’re trying to get people in the right line and through the gates were around at 1:30 telling people what to expect and where to line up. But they were not to be seen at 4-5 when droves of people. People were lining up in the express lines with chairs and bags, and getting through as no one was at the gate to turn them away. It seemed unfair to those of us that had been sitting there for hours before the doors opened up.
Brandi played for a long time with great energy! Go see her! You won't be disappointed. The Gorge could use some better organization, but the view is nice.
The Echos Through the Canyon at the Gorge, June 9 and 10 were phenomenal. The artists really brought their best to the stage and their audiences. The beauty of the Gorge and the Amphitheater provided the visual beauty to match the sounds!
The Gorge is one of the most beautiful concert venues I've ever seen and hearing Brandi Carlile, Joni Mitchell, Sarah McLachlan and so mang other amazing artists singing together was a dream come true! However, getting into the venue and ending up in the right line (there were 3, one of which a T-mobile xpass) was a challenge. There were not enough signs or venue workers directing concert goers and the half a mile treck down a twisting, sandy and rocky hill just to get to the end of the GA line was NOT a good experience. I dread to think what seniors or people with disabilities had to go through. My mother would have fallen for sure. Needs to be better organized, especially for people new to that area.
Had two wonderful nights at the Gorge with Brandi and co. The tribute and Jam with Joni was awesome. Mumford was full value. Annie and Sarah as surprise son Friday put that show over the top.Brandi is an excellent entertainer and her band are just so good. I was not aware of the third night until we arrived otherwise I would have stayed for that too. Great crowd, met lots of wonderful and diverse people.
The artists were AMAZING. The location is breathtaking. And this venue is HORRIBLY mismanaged. The lines to get in were awful. The signs at the venue didn’t match what was relayed online. The waiting area is in full sun (or wind, or rain). And when you have to wait for 90-120 minutes to get in, that is a lot!! None of the staff knew what they were doing. They didn’t know what alcohol was in the drinks, or allergens in food. There was limited recycling capabilities and the camping was also a HUGE wait to get in/re-enter. It might get better as the season goes, but wow!! I would think long and hard before returning to this venue under the same management.
We were extremely disappointed with the orchestration of this event. We pulled off the freeway, only to sit in a 5 mile traffic backup for well over an hour. There was only one line for both campers and people parking, which was disastrous. Although we timed our trip to arrive several hours before the concert, we actually missed a whole hour of the concert. This is unacceptable. Also, although there were many closer campsites which were never used, we were sent to the outer reaches of the field, requiring us to walk a very long distance to get to the concert gate. The frustration didn't end there. After the concert, we couldn't find our campsite for almost 2 hours. There is no map of the camping field and no organized system for locating campsites. There were very many people who couldn't find their campsite after the show, some probably wandering around until the next morning!! This is unsafe and totally unacceptable. We paid large sums to see this concert, only to be met with one frustration after another. With this type of venue, which attracts massive crowds, it is inexcusable to be this under-prepared and disorganized. The employees were helpful, but I imagine they probably need to be paid more for the work they do. And if you solved these problems, you might not have to employ as many of them. After this fiasco, we may never go to a concert at the Gorge again.
