I went to The Empress Hotel tonight to see a gig. There were three different acoustic artists on the bill, and I was unaware of any of their music prior to the show. The first set was from a guy with a guitar and a vocal style reminiscent of the early pub days of Jason Mraz. His name was Josh Cashman, and it wasn’t only the quality of music that made me instantly like him, but the content of his songs and his toe-tappingly catchy guitar riffs. Not a stationary foot in the house.

After Josh finished up to a well-deserved applause, the other two artists that followed did not disappoint either. One guy did these amazing loops where he would lay down all the foundations of the track and then solo over the loop on his small acoustic. My favourite track was one where he actually rapped over his own beat and melody. Then to cap the night off, an eccentric high school teacher got up and sung his songs about the random dreams he had and his everyday interactions. I have to say I haven’t laughed so hard in a while when he sung about a toy pink poodle that he saw at a garage sale and felt a connection with. While the content of his songs was highly amusing, the music was simple and catchy and his voice almost made you forget about the comical content coming out of his mouth.

All in all a good night, and I have to say that I will be back there to witness some more amazing live acts in the near future. If anyone else has any recommendations on where is good to go and hear live music, I’d love to hear them. I’m always up to hear a great band or singer in their element. I think next I’ll be off to The HiFi on Friday to catch Flyleaf play, which should be pretty electric! I don’t think there are many better things than hearing polished and invigorating live music, it really inspires me to think, feel, and above all: dance.