As a journalist coming to a show I've never heard of, filled with artists I'm only slightly more familiar with, isn't something I ever thought I would enjoy as much as I do. The Common Grounds Music is a 6 day event that takes place in Lansing every year. The event is based around 2 large stages with a moderate amount of vending on the path between them (I think the tacos made me sick.) This was the second day of the event, and the 4 bands playing were Keb Mo, Bloodletting, Bonnie Raitt, and Tesla. Although it may not show much, it rained the entire day, and if anything, progressively got heavier throughout the night (like any decent rock band.)
Starting almost immediately after I arrived, I rushed over to watch a Keb Mo, pulling a twang or two from his acoustic. Fast past, dripping with blues, and keeping the crowd entertained, Keb Mo knew how to work the the audience, and his musical skills were hardly in bluff. Although there was not much energy in his set, his music was a great start to the festival, and was as up beat as blues comes.
Soon afterwards, we bit the bullet and caught the end of Bloodletting's set. New age metal, with heavy System of A Down influences. It might do them good to pass it on to the bass player that Shavo Odadjian isn't the only bassist on the planet. They really didn't tickle my fancy in any way shape or form, so I moved on.
Ahhh, Bonnie Raitt. It just feels nice saying that. She was a warm breath of fresh air in the otherwise perpetual downpour ... Literally. Part of the reason her show was so amazing to watch was due to the way she approached the audience, entirely, instead of focusing on one person at a time. It really felt like she was getting her message out to everyone at once. Her songs of love and understanding give that sense of sympathy a talk with the grandmother does, without the blanket of peace and love shared in the 70's.
Lastly, I managed over to Teslas show, as the rain reached it's eventual climax. Half Hairband, half ... aerosmith with a kick. Tesla pulls out some originals, but also a large amount of popular covers. Usually this would be where I complained about that, but they pulled Black Sabbath, and Jimmy Hendrix off particularly well making it an enjoyable experience to hear. The best part of this set was their original, signs, which you've probably been fed via FM, and involved many changes to gear mid song.
Well, there really is no wrap up, we left the show immediately afterwards for a very wet, doze and swerve car ride home.
Hope to drop some more coverage off soon.
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