Kevn Kinney's S.T.A.R. - Saturday night
Current mood: giddy
Category: Music

Ever just had one of those weeks?  One where everything seems to be falling apart, you can't manage to do anything right, and your head is nowhere to be found?

That was last week for me.  Work sucked, after-work sucked, it all sucked.  But there's always the promise of the weekend, and for me, the weekend often holds a little live music for me to escape in.  And because Fortune is good to me upon ocassion (especially after being absent all week), Kevn Kinney's Sun Tangled Angel Revival happened to be playing in Gwinnett Saturday night.

Growing up here in God's Country and living here most of my life has afforded me many opportunities to behold Kevn's musical genius.  In fact, I can't tell you how many times I've seen Kevn live -- with Drivin' N' Cryin', solo, with friends (Edwin McCain, Warren Haynes, etc.), with S.T.A.R.  What I can tell you is that no matter how high that number grows, every show stands out, and I always leave appreciative and blown away.

Saturday night was no exception.  Kevn took the stage around 10:00pm, took a 20 minute break around 11:15pm, then played right on through until about 1:30am or so (even after being abandoned by his band!).  The guitarist, a new one for S.T.A.R. (perhaps a guest) who is a superb player and a super nice guy, looked at me with a huge grin and commented, "That guy'd keep playin' all night.  We all would."  And we'd let them!

Both sets included Kevn Kinney staples -- "Honeysuckle Blue" in the first and "Straight to Hell" in the second.  There was a great version of "Scarred but Smarter" in the first as well.  The second set greeted us with some acoustic numbers -- "The Country Song," "Let's Go Dancin'," and snippets of Nirvana's "All Apologies" -- as well as a few substantial jam sessions, proving that S.T.A.R. is truly one of the tightest bands around these days.     

Kevn closed out the night by playing a couple of numbers on his own, then being joined again by bassist Bryan Howard and drummer Dave V. Johnson for a stellar version of "Baby, I Just Want to Go Home" -- a perfect cap to an outstanding gig.

One of my first thoughts when I'm walking out of a Kevn Kinney gig is always "Man, I can't wait to see them again."  And I can't.  And I'm always excited to see the crowds grow in size, although my sincere hope is that people will realize that there is more to him than "Straight to Hell" and "Fly Me Courageous."  The man is a remarkable lyricist, much in the Dylan vein, and he is a crazy awesome guitarist to boot.  I just can't get enough.

So, if you see he's going to be in your neck of the woods, definitely go check it out.  I assure you, you will not be let down.