Chicago’s newest music venue, Garcia’s, was home to Grace Potter for two nights as part of their inaugural line-up.
It’s a long time in the works, but the Jerry Garcia-inspired music venue has finally opened in Chicago’s West Loop. The wait was definitely worth it. Garcia’s allows for intimate settings without being crammed in. It’s always great to have new venues, and this one is going to be a popular one for sure. The 300-capacity space has only been open for a month and has already hosted a good number of artists.
The moment tickets for An Intimate Evening with Grace Potter were released, they sold out immediately. Shortly after, a second night was announced, giving fans another opportunity to try to secure tickets.
Fans were in for a treat as there was no opener, just two full sets from Grace Potter herself. To add to the intimate feeling of these shows, Grace performed solo without the aid of her band. Or as she phrased it, “You’re all f***ed” because the band usually would start playing, stopping her from talking too much.
If you’ve never seen Grace Potter live before, you really should get yourself along to one of her shows. It was like you got to glimpse inside of her mind for a few hours – with movie scripts, singing in the voices of Muppets and Fraggles, impromptu cover songs (whether she knew all the lyrics or not), and the poor man’s smoke machine. She is a true performer in every sense of the word. She had the audience laughing one minute and then mesmerized by her incredible voice the next. Throughout both sets, Grace had everyone in the audience captivated, whether they were singing along or laughing at the weird twists and turns that the evening took.
While this truly felt like you were sitting passing the time with a friend due to the various interactions between Potter and the crowd, it didn’t take away from just how great a performance this was. To stand on a stage by yourself and hold the attention of the audience single-handedly is no mean feat, but one that she easily accomplished none-the-less. The range of Potter’s voice is nothing short of outstanding. She ranges from the most angelic heights to gravelly the next.
Typically when someone has new music coming out, they tend to weave it in amongst their older material. Not one to play by the rule book, Potter opened with “Medicine” from the album of the same name which is set for release on May 30. Despite being unreleased, it certainly kicked the night off the right way. If you look at the setlist for the evening, you’d wonder what on earth was going on. We had “My Little Pony,” “Cabaret,” “Jolene,” and “Black Hole Sun” to name just a few covers that popped up throughout the night. This was definitely a case of “you had to be there.”
Grace has a handful of upcoming dates supporting Chris Stapleton but with new music just around the corner, more tour dates are sure to follow. Keep an eye out for her coming to a venue near you as you are sure to have a great night!
GRACE POTTER
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