Shakey Graves - turf 2015

As Shakey Graves was the first act of the festival I would get to see, I was just settling in when I heard his first notes from the media booth, at which point I panicked and ran. As I approached the West Stage at TURF I thought that perhaps I was mistaken. “Is that actually Shakey on stage?” The artist I had listened to online was folky and rootsy, on the softer side. The madman on stage had a raw, distorted sound. As I ran toward the stage I realized it was indeed Shakey Graves spewing this amazing Acid Country. The voice was familiar, but I reeled throughout his set as my mind adjusted to my new perceptions of Shakey Graves.

He did utilize Folk stylings throughout his time on stage, but Graves mostly stuck to rocking out with his rockabilly drummer. I have greatly underestimated you Mr. Graves, I was a fan before, but now that I have seen your live show, just call me crazed. Shakey’s voice is very folky and he utilizes his polished falsetto to juxtapose his rootsy Blues Rock guitar and occasional pulsing synth playing with a smudge of Folk. He did at several point ask his amazing musical collaborator and spastic drummer, Chris Boosahda, to take a break so that he could do a few bare bones acoustic numbers. This was by no means the low point in the show, in fact it was at this point that Shakey got personal and really seemed to create an intimate experience in a huge festival crowd. 

Shakey Graves is a sensational performer. Watching his show is like catching up with a brilliant and crazy old friend. Weaving his banter with the stories of his songs, Shakey held the audience of TURF captive.

www.shakeygraves.com/

Review and pictures by: Gideon Greenbaum-Shinder
Edited by: Jesse Kline