Scotland based singer-songwriter JP O'Grady recently dropped by The Airliner Bar. He was part of the School Night showcase (a collaboration between Make Out Music and KCRW). I will say he has a song out there called "Half Way Home" that has rather detailed lyrics about Los Angeles county so perhaps he hangs out across the pond extensively. Either way, he spent part of September playing venues in Los Angeles: Hotel Ziggy, Healing Force of the Universe, and The Airliner Bar. It was in fact his Hotel Ziggy set that had me checking out his set at The Airliner Bar. How so? The Hotel Ziggy set was a WFNM showcase night. I wasn't able to go to that night, but WFNM's Grant Owens suggested that I check out the School Night set.
 |
| JP O'Grady at The Airliner Bar |
What I noticed: Actually, he brought up it. He was using both of his feet on his keyboard's pedal. Why? He mentioned that it was broken so he had one foot atop the pedal while another worked the lever. It was rather darkly lit inside the venue so I'm not sure anyone would have noticed.
His vocals flow gracefully. There is also a precision to those vocals -- they were perfectly clear. His keyboard playing was a lesson in chord progressions. The song compositions are just as lovely and intimate as his singing.
 |
| JP O'Grady at The Airliner Bar |
It should be noted that he used to perform under the moniker of Citizen Papes.
The song spotlight goes to "Heavenly Father." A yearning tune about wanting to know if there is a God or not. Is he agnostic or an atheist? I'm not sure the song addresses that topic, but it does address the question of rather or not there is a higher being up there.
 |
| JP O'Grady at The Airliner Bar |
There's gotta be light on the other side of this
Partial Setlist: Count the Planes, Heavenly Father, I Don't Really Blame You, The World's Most Embarrassing Guy, On The Coast.
No comments:
Post a Comment