Trevor Hall Zens Out @ The Ogden
Smiles. That’s all you saw when scanning the crowd at the Gothic Theater Friday night. Trevor Hall took the stage around 9 following the young, and very talented, Dustin Thomas AKA Little Buffalo.
If you haven’t listened to Trevor Hall, you should know his songs all carry a theme of tranquility and serenity. Each song leaks and oozes of peaceful goodness. With ease, listening to Trevor can relax the even the tensest person in the worst of moods. The lyrics to each tune are extremely spiritual and reflect Trevor’s deep connection to mother Earth, which he clearly treasures. With lyrics like “if you cut that tree, oh we’re never gonna be free,” his message is clear. Leave mother Earth alone and appreciate her for all her beauty; a message many of us can closely relate to.
Trevor Hall has been producing albums for over ten years; he has 7 records and like any artist his sound has changed over time, but his message of peace has remained the same. Trevor’s fan base has really begun to pick up steam since the release of his most recent album, KALA. The increase in stardom is much deserved for this talented, kind, and genuine being. Both of Trevor Hall’s Denver shows were sold out, and the crowd nearly lost it when he announced he and his wife are planning on moving to the colorful state!
Trevor Hall opened with “Mother” off his most recent album “KALA”. This song is particularly beautiful, an ode to mother earth. Trevor’s voice is enough to carry any song into greatness, but he also has an incredible band supporting him. His percussionist really stood out, (despite the fact he sat the whole show while playing), he was extremely talented and very passionate. You could feel the energy exuding from each instrument he jingled, shook, and smashed.
Each song that Trevor played Friday night was moving and touching in it’s own special way, there was no bad song or negative vibe in the building. However, in this writer’s humble opinion, there were a few parts of the night that really stood out. The first was when the band played a song that they “haven’t played in 8-9 years”. Woah, way to make a crowd feel special! The song was “Parachute” and it was a beaut. The pinnacle of the show was when Trevor called Dustin Thomas back to the stage, along with Xiuhtezcatl Tonatiuh, and Matene for his song “Obsidian”. Xiuhtezcatl is a young local who is part of a band called “Earth Guardians”, which consists of all of his siblings. Matene is a Native American and friend of Nahko, from the band Nahko and Medicine for the People. Matene was adorned in full Native American traditional dress and performed a dance along to “Obsidian”. “Obsidian” is an extremely powerful song, influenced heavily by Native American sounds and rhythms. The performance of this song was one that left you with chills down your spine and your heart pounding deep in your chest. The stage presence and connection of all these young artists was incredible to witness. If the crowd hadn’t already been standing, they would have undoubtedly given these guys a standing ovation at the conclusion of this song. I have seen many concerts, and have not been touched so profoundly by a 4-5-minute performance in quite some time.
(Left to Right) Dustin, Trevor. Matene, Xiuhtezcatl
After “Obsidian” the rest of the band mates took a break and left Trevor to play two new acoustic songs. Trevor has some really unique life experiences behind his lyrics, I love to see him live and learn about the beautiful back stories. The story this time was related to his first acoustic song. It tells about a sacred ritual that he is carrying out, taking sacred water from Hawaii to India, and from India to Hawaii. The second song was written about Standing Rock, and was dedicated to those who have fought to protect it. Standing Rock was mentioned a few times throughout the show, and is clearly something close to the band’s heart. The lyrics were “If you are a rock stand up like a mountain… Water is life, life from the water”. During both tunes the crowd fell completely silent, totally absorbed in the beauty of the songs and the powerful messages they carried.
Words by Sam Cantore