As a veteran concert-goer, I'm especially drawn to the smaller venues where the promise of a well-produced, well-staged show can bring audience members more intimately into the total musical experience. The Carolina Theater is just that venue.
Having heard Victor's bands before, I knew to expect a stellar level of enjoyment and was thoroughly rewarded in that regard. The musicians, as well as vocalist Crystal Peterson, are not just world-class but absolutely "other-worldly" in their ability to musically communicate to, and completely involve and absorb the audience as full participants in their vision of an evening's musical journey. They succeeded at evoking all the range of emotion from the subtle whispers of contemplation to the unbridled joys of unfettered musical abandon.
The latter half of the evening brought the Jimmy Herring Band to the stage. I've listened to Jimmy since I first saw him during his stint with the Allman Brothers. I believe his talent and dedication over the years firmly places him in that small elite group of guitarists where accolades and superlatives almost describe the level of recognition that artists such as Jimmy truly deserve. Of course, someone at that level enjoys the greatest success when surrounded by musicians of equal calibre. Jeff Sipe, Neal Fountain, and Matt Slocum round out that lineup and anyone would be well-served in going to see this band live.
Jimmy, in his unassuming stage manner, connected and communicated completely with the audience solely through the tones of each note and chord that he artfully and musically produced. He played his guitars with a sonic excellence that only those organically familiar with the instrument are able to do. Round that out with Jeff Sipe's thoughtfully rhythmic drumming, Neal Fountain's tastefully tonic bass notes and runs, and, of course, Matt Slocum's musically expressive presence on the Hammond B3 as well as his "romps" on the Hohner Clavinet and you have the formula for an energetic and soul-satisfying set of great music!
