Live Review from The Art of Music
1. Shades of Grey
2. Don’t Look Down
3. Watch Me
4. Little Person (cover)
5. La Vie En Rose (cover)
6. Perf Exec
7. Last Still Standing
8. Winter’s Feat
9. Not in the Xmas Mood
Down the rabbit hole with the whimsical song-crafting of Laura Weinbach on her debut gig in Asia. Laura’s enthralling soprano melodies over deft classical guitar lines are reminiscent of ancient Celtic or lute music from ages past. Laura has her hands full with her very active finger-style classical guitar playing. Listening to her well-conceived lyrical poetry makes one feel as if a long lost melody found its way through an open window and somehow it knows your name. There’s a timeless feel to Laura’s songwriting, filled with more heartfelt creativity than catchy pop-isms. Although diminutive in stature and unassuming offstage, during her solo performance she takes on a larger than life persona that engages you unerringly. The guitar voicing is the other Laura, a second vocal harmony of sorts. She blends her singing voice and guitar phrasing so that the resulting harmonies give you the sense of two singers on stage.
When Laura performed two covers of classic French romance/jazz songs, her singing voice & guitar blended better than most anything that solo artists would subject us to, blissfully original and charismatic. This is the kind of talent you HOPE TO SEE and hear at acoustic jams and coffee shops, but often get disappointed. Laura really has the kind of timeless talent that draws you out as a listener. She’s the sort of act you want to tell your friends that they MUST see and hear for themselves. Let’s hope Laura returns to Hong Kong one day with the full combo of Foxtails Brigade although we would gladly settle for just Laura on her own again.
Christopher Johnson
