23 July 2009 (gig)
24 July 2009
On a visit to London I had the opportunity to go to St. Pancras International and witness another Station Session. The previous session was outstanding and even with a more stripped down set, the penultimate show was even better.
First up to the microphone was bluesman Marcus Bonfanti. With just an acoustic guitar and bass drum emulator he really captured the feel of the delta blues perfectly. As soon as the first lyric passed his lips, his gravelly powerful Howlin' wolf style voice reverberated around the entire station bringing a multitude of listeners around the stage. He knows how to make the guitar sing and churned out slide guitar on 'Gimme All Your Money' and played a truly amazing cover of the Beatles’ Come Together. 'God Only Knows’ displayed Bonfanti's harmonica skills, which were as electrifying as his guitar playing, and his good humor went down well whilst entertaining the audience between songs. I give him 5 stars alone.
'I really enjoyed playing here,' says Bonfanti, 'there are way more people turning up than I originally thought, but it’s a great way to get exposure. I’m playing to commuters all over London, some from outside the capital and even tourists from Europe. Station Sessions is a great idea – entertaining people for free – it adds to London’s already thriving music scene.'
Second was Sprite's poster girl Katie Vogel, a singer songwriter who took to the stage with just a guitarist and donning a Willy Wonka costume. The backing guitar hardly stopped playing providing a constant flow of music throughout the set, smooth transitions between songs and a solid backing for Katie's soulful and jazzy style of songs. Vogel tended to lean towards the darker and melancholic side of jazz, similar to Nina Simone or Etta James, juxtaposing her naturally friendly personality we saw in between songs. 'Fight for Love’ with its bouncing up-tempo rhythm added another dimension to her set, mixing a rock attitude with her jazz style. With a good amount of crowd participation she put on an entertaining show and knows how to really perform to a crowd.
'Musically I’m influenced by the Jazz greats,' says Katie Vogel, 'but I’m also heavily inspired by bands like Queen for their theatrics. I think it’s very important, especially on a stage like this, to put on a real show. Music itself won’t really turn heads so it also helps to have good showmanship and image.'
Next week’s Station Sessions is the final one but will have quality performances from Kerry Leatham and Vula. For more information go to www.stationsessions.com.
For more information on Marcus Bonfanti visit www.marcusbonfanti.com and for Katie Vogel visit www.greeneyedworld.com.
