Show Review – Keller Williams, 10.10.09, Bogarts, Cincinnati, OH

Keller Williams
Keller Williams

Review by Scott Preston

It’s been a while since Keller made his way to Cincinnati so I was very much looking forward to this show. Keller made his first appearance of the evening introducing the opening act, Almira Fawn. She is a great singer and songwriter and is only 12 years old. I can see why Keller like her, she is pretty damn good at looping as well. Keller mentioned he first saw her perform in Charleston, SC and told us to be ready to be impressed, and he was correct.

Keller’s stage was setup just like the corner music store in anyone’s neighborhood. I believe I counted 14 guitars, 2 bass guitars, mandolin, banjo, drum machine and an endless assortment of noise making devices. Also included in this wonderland was a shelf with a cash register on top and what seemed like an endless assortment of foot pedals filling the remaining shelf space. When the lights went down, everyone’s excitement started to build as we started to hear an acoustic guitar but no one was on stage. After a few moments Keller emerges with a huge grin on his face and spent the next few minutes playing to the crowd right from the edge of the stage. At one point Keller must have had 10 different instruments looping while he did a little dance in the middle of the stage, getting lost in his own music to the delight of the crowd. What attracts me to Keller’s music is the amount of improvisation that he has built into his music, and he did not disappoint anyone this evening.

I really had a great time throughout the show, because when Keller is enjoying himself that energy is transferred straight to the audience. I do like when Keller puts his own twist on a cover song like he did with Steve Miller’s Fly Like An Eagle and Wanted Dead or Alive. I enjoy his originals just as much , such as Mental Instra, Bounty Hunter, Stash, and for some reason I really felt Best Feeling got the crowd dancing and in a good mood. Keller has himself very busy for the rest of the year, here are the rest of his dates for October:

Oct 13 2009 The Intersection Grand Rapids, Michigan
Oct 15 2009 City Opera House Traverse City, Michigan
Oct 16 2009 Barrymore Theatre Madison, Wisconsin
Oct 17 2009 Park West Chicago, Illinois
Oct 19 2009 People’s Des Moines, Iowa
Oct 20 2009 The Beaumont Kansas City, Missouri
Oct 21 2009 Fargo Theatre Fargo, North Dakota
Oct 22 2009 Varsity Theatre Minneapolis, Minnesota
Oct 23 2009 The Englert Theatre Iowa City, Iowa
Oct 24 2009 Murat Egyptian Room Indianapolis, Indiana
Oct 25 2009 Mr Smalls Theatre Millvale, Pennsylvania

http://www.kellerwilliams.net