By Allison Staulcup
The Subterranean was packed last Wednesday night as people gathered for a night full of acoustic guitars and passionate vocals. Right Away, Great Captain! (Andy Hull of Manchester Orchestra), Casey Crescenzo (of The Dear Hunter) and Harrison Hudson all took turns providing engaging melodies and endearing dialogue with the audience.
Harrison Hudson started the show with a short and sweet set. Playing only a handful of songs, he managed to win over the eager crowd with his rock and roll love songs. Without his band Hudson’s songs took on a new light, becoming more sincere and heartbreaking than their upbeat roots.
He was willing to take requests from the audience and share the stories behind his songs. His band’s latest album American Thunder is currently available on 12” colored vinyl in a limited pressing of 300.
Casey Crescenzo’s powerful voice overtook the venue next, as he played songs from The Dear Hunter. His songs provided for a perfect call and answer with the crowd, as his lyrics were quickly chanted back to him as he began playing. His set provided a lot of flexibility as he took requests, played a cover and even treated the audience to a song he had written only a few weeks before and had never played live.
Crescenzo also shared the good news that he was headed back to the studio after the tour to begin work on a new album. The Dear Hunter offers the complete collection of their Color EPs as The Color Spectrum consisting of nine 10” color records.
The crowd was soon captivated by the quiet pleading of Andy Hull’s vocals as he told the story of a sailor who discovers his wife has been unfaithful with his own brother. Though some sang quietly along, the haunting story of Right Away, Great Captain! rang clear over the audience. Looking relieved after the first few songs, Hull revealed he had never played those songs live before. With gentle guitar for support, Hull conveyed the emotions of a betrayed sailor– a mix of longing and hatred.
The set was a nice blend of songs from all three of Right Away, Great Captain’s albums. Hull ended his ninety minute set by playing several Bad Books’ (his side project with Kevin Devine) and Manchester Orchestra’s songs. The Right Away, Great Captain! trilogy of albums is available on 12” vinyl. A deluxe version is also available featuring “The Lost Sea” which contains original demos and previously unreleased music.
