Last Saturday night Ingrid Michaelson visited The Moore Theater along with Brooklyn rockers, Harper Blynn. Prior to the show, I had heard great things about both artists.

Harper Blynn certainly didn’t disappoint.  In fact, they were awesome!  Considering that the majority of the crowd was women, these guys got the place rocking.  They opened with tracks from their latest album, Busy Hands, including “I Think I’m Falling in Love” and “Sucker.”

Slowly but surely, the crowd go into the sound of Harper Blynn.  It’s no surprise because these guys are the ultimate rock band – two lead vocalists, Pete Harper and J Blynn, with equally as powerful and smooth voices – catchy riffs and raw talent.  When they harmonize together it’s magical.  Individually these guys are good, together they are amazing!

Before the last song, Pete said “you guys might want to get up and dance for this song!”  I don’t think anyone expected actually dance, but the band made it inevitable with their bright and energetic cover of Beyonce’s “Halo.” It was nuts (in the best way ever!).  In fact, I caught a clip of it, check it out:

After Harper Blynn’s set, I could feel the crowd’s excitement growing for Ingrid Michaelson.  I’d never been to one of Ingrid’s shows – I expected it to be great, since her latest record, Human Again, is fantastic. This particular show was very special to be a part of because it was sold out and it was the first time Ingrid played to such a large crowd in Seattle – a fact that she later acknowledged early on during her set.

Just after 9 o’clock, when the crowd eased back into their seats after the intermission,  the stage suddenly went dark.  The silhouettes of Ingrid’s band members made their way on stage and started playing a rhythmic version of the beginning of Human Again opening track, “Fire.”  After a minute or so, Ingrid made her way on stage to a packed room full of applause.

After a powerful version of “Fire,” she moved right into “Palm of Your Hand.” The crowd was loving it. Ingrid took a moment to look out into the crowd after playing a couple of songs and noted how the first show she played in Seattle was years ago at the Q Cafe. “We’re any of you there?” she asked. When a small portion of the balcony started cheering, she lovingly said, “You were?! Awww!”

From there, she played a couple of her older songs followed by an intimate solo cover of “Fools Rush In.” The crowd fell silent and hung on her every soft note. She loved the silence – at the end of the song she brought her band back out on stage and told them what a good audience this was and that she had “spent some alone time with them and they are so sweet.” It was this type of witty banter that made the show so funny and interactive.

She moved on to play several more songs from the album, my favorite of which was “Do It Now.” She played it on softly on the piano with the vocal support of her two back up singers and then the rest of the band joined later. It was so lovely.

When she moved into playing “The Way I Am” on her ukelele, I could really feel the love in the theater and I imagine it was ten times more powerful for her standing on the stage staring out into a crowd that was singing every single word along with her.

Ingrid is such a witty and charming performer, I found myself laughing several times during the set – especially during her “sexual harrassment” song.  If you were at the show, then I’ll let you revel in that memory for a little bit right now.  It was so funny and unforgettable.  Before her last song, she said, “okay this is our last song…before we leave the stage and then come back and play some more songs!”

Her encore performance of “Maybe” was definitely a highlight, as well as her performance of “You and I” with Harper Blynn and all of the band members.  Each of them sang a line out of the first verses.  They were laughing and clearly having a blast.

The verdict: Awesome performer, awesome show.  Definitely don’t miss Ingrid Michaelson when she makes her way into your town!

Thanks for having us, Ingrid!