The Dayton Underground Series continued last month by featuring six phenomenal local songwriters at Jimmie’s Ladder 11 in Dayton, and the night was dreamy from start to finish! The crowd was completely lured in by music from Raya, Kyleen Downes, Kevin Milner, Todd the Fox & Victoria Harper, Sharon Lane, and Jeremy & Lynne and The Typical Johnsons!
Maybe you think songwriters just sit around and sing folk songs by the light of a campfire, but we brought together a diverse group of writers who showed the crowd at Jimmie’s that songwriters can be fresh, pretty, political, soulful, funny, and even a bit rowdy from time to time!
The night started off with fantastic performances by Raya, Kevin
Milner, and Kyleen Downes performing in a “round”.
We were stoked to have Raya kick off each round! Her clean, pop style was fresh, powerful and dramatic, and her beautiful voice stunned the audience and immediately drew them near the stage like moths to a flame. Raya’s debut EP, ‘Veils’, is one of our favorites, and she’s rumored to be releasing a new album soon! You can listen to ‘Veils’ HERE!
Kevin Milner held down the middle of the rounds like nobody’s business. He has this kind of somber and understated delivery that belies a great sense of humor, smart lyrics, and one of the coolest sounds around town. His performances totally hit home with the audience, and they responded with plenty of love throughout the round! You can check out Kevin’s music on Soundcloud, HERE!
Closing out each round was Kyleen Downes, whose indie pop sound you may have heard about in recent months. Thanks to the coolest Kickstarter ever earlier this year that funded her just-released debut album, ‘Maybe Sometimes’, Dayton was treated to a cool sneak preview of songs off the new album. We love her music, and you can find out more about her by checking out our review of ‘Maybe Sometimes’ HERE! Pick yourself up a copy of the new album on CD Baby and Amazon.com and stream it on iHeart radio!
After the songwriter round, we switched things up a bit with some hyper-Delta Blues and 2/3 of the Todd the Fox Trio – Todd the Fox and Victoria Harper. Todd and Victoria are a staple in the local scene, and their homegrown flavor is a bit rowdy, a bit of fun, and loaded with Blues soul! Together, this duo pushed the crowd into a new gear and kept the energy of the night burning strong! Grab yourself some music from Todd and the gang HERE!
The third set of the night was delivered by Dayton’s own Blues Queen, the fabulous Sharon Lane! Sharon is a legend in her own right, delivering some of the most powerful and moving performances you’ll ever have the chance to hear! This night was no exception, and the intimate performance she brought to Jimmie’s stage on this night was definitely one to remember! At the moment, you’ll have a hard time finding recordings of her music, but there is word of an album coming within the next year. Also joining her on stage for several songs was the inimitable Danny Sauers! Sharon and Danny have played together for more than two decades, but with Danny spending much of his time now playing out with the jam and funk band, Subterranean, it was a rare and special occasion to have both Sharon and Danny playing together for the showcase!
Finishing out the festivities with a bang, Jeremy & Lynne and their band, The Typical Johnsons, rocked the stage with songs off their brand new album, ‘The Sailor & The Siren’! Jeremy & Lynne Seigrest are the songwriting heart and soul of the group, and with the recent addition of Andy and Jeff Brogan and Justin Luckey, there are so many more layers to their music now. The group is now free to explore the depths of emotion that their music really deserves. You can pick up a copy of their new album on their website HERE and catch our review of the new album HERE.
If you missed the show, you can still get a taste of what these amazing artists have to share with you by downloading Vol. 5 of our Dayton Underground Series! There are six, high-quality songs on this compilation (one song from each artist(s)) including a previously unreleased track by Sharon Lane, and the best part is that it’s completely FREE to download!
The Dayton Underground Series was created by Music Connection Dayton. It is sponsored by Sound City Music, and each event is a drop off point for clothing and food donations to Helping the Homeless-Dayton, OH. The series began in March 2016, and each show features great local music and a free digital compilation download. All performing artists can be heard on W937 Dayton Radio. For more information on upcoming events in The Dayton Underground Series and how YOU can help us decide the Best of Dayton Underground 2016, visit www.musicconnectiondayton.com.
Check out these cool pics from the show!
Music Connection Dayton 