Lake Street Dive sold out yet another venue when the band stopped by Washington, DC’s Anthem last Friday night, offering up a night of jazz and soul-inspired music to the happy and enthusiastic crowd.
Supporting Lake Street Dive on this tour is Washington state native Allen Stone. It’s not the first time Stone has treated Washington, DC to his old school funk and soul sounds; he’s headlined in town before, having most recently played the Lincoln Theatre last December and the 9:30 Club just before the pandemic shut everything down.
So the crowd was already happy to see him and eager to hear his gorgeous voice, often compared to Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye. This was my first time seeing Stone; the voice stopped me dead in my tracks. Stone’s latest album, released in November 2021, is APART, featuring acoustic versions of fan favorites spanning his catalog. Friday night, Stone filled The Anthem with his sweet melodies and even sang his thanks to everyone present, from the crowd, to the bartenders, and even the venue’s custodians.
The Brooklyn-based, multi-genre band (Rachael Price, Bridget Kearney, Mike Calbrese, Akie Bermiss, and James Cornelison) packed much into their set—plenty of the setlist came from their 2021 release Obviously (“Hypotheticals,” “Hush Money,” and “Same Old News,” among others). In addition, the set was sprinkled with cover tunes—the Jackson 5’s “Want You Back” made an appearance, as did Carole King’s “So Far Away,” and Bonnie Raitt’s “Nick of Time.”
For myself, the inclusion of the Pointer Sisters’ “Automatic” was a pleasant surprise—it was a favorite song of mine as a child and I discovered I still remembered the lyrics! At the end of the set, Stone joined Price for the fan-favorite “Good Kisser.”
It’s a talented group of musicians and the standout is the golden-throated Rachael Price. Riding the wave of togetherness established by Allen Stone, the Australia-born, Tennessee-raised Price instructed everyone in the crowd to say hello to the people to their left and to their right, noting that “anything can happen.” The smiling crowd packed into The Anthem Friday night seemed content to simply bask in the great performances.
Lake Street Dive’s tour continues into mid-October, wrapping up in Oakland, CA.
ALLEN STONE
LAKE STREET DRIVE SETLIST
Know That I Know
Hypotheticals
Hush Money
Automatic
Better Than
Same Old News
Lackluster Lover
I Don’t Care About You
Making Do
So Far Away
Stop Your Crying
Neighbor Song
I Want You Back
Linger
You’re Still the One
Nick of Time
Nobody’s Stopping You Now
Seventeen
Bad Self Portraits
Good Kisser
Sarah
Call Off Your Dogs
