Concert review: Rodrigo Y Gabriela at the House of Blues (October 19)

by Eric Landrum of The Indie-verse

House of Blues, what? More like House of Furious Acoustical Rock.

Hopefully you went to Rodrigo Y Gabriela at House of Blues last night. If not, you missed out on a severe session of awesomeness. Here is my synopsis.

I have had the privilege of getting to see Rodrigo Y Gabriela on four occasions, and their progress completely amazes me. The first time was a brief excursion at Coachella 2007 in a super-packed tent that was impossible to get inside; I realized then and there that they were awesome. The second time was the first day of Bonnaroo in 2007 where they absolutely destroyed the tent they played in and connected with the energy of the crowd on a level that I still have yet to see matched -- it ranks in my best shows ever. I also saw them debut their new stuff at Bonnaroo this year on the main stage. Nothing beats being able to see them in a small venue like the House of Blues or a tent at a festival though. Last night was one of those occasions.

The level of which they play the guitar is unparalleled and warrants almost no comparison. Rodrigo is an absolute solo master, and Gabriela can play the guitar with her rhythmic drumming style fashion better than anyone else on the planet. I truly mean that -- she is a musical genius that has no comparison. Put them together and they fully know how to feed off the energy of the crowd and each other. House of Blues was rocked out hard with acoustic guitars last night.

They have a background coming from a metal band from Mexico City back in the day. Metallica and Pink Floyd songs and solos are constantly busted out during their sets. Last night had a focus on their new album, which I have yet to experience but will soon. The show ran for about an hour and 15 minutes last night. I did miss the opening band, which happens frequently when traveling from Fort Worth and having a few beers in the parking lot before the show. The first band was over by 9:20 when I got inside.

The showed can be summarized as such: lots of their new material with a few older songs. They each played a solo song alone on stage. At one point, Rodrigo played a solo using a beer bottle for a slide. Gabriela played a little bongo type drum with her amazing fingers while Rodrigo played guitar. Their encore consisted of a version of "Stairway to Heaven" and "Tamacun," which always rocks. Not much else to elaborate on -- they are unbelievably talented musicians who have earned the place they are at.

If you didn’t go, I am sorry but you missed out. At least I recorded some for the majority of the city who did not get to witness their set.

No one rocks harder on acoustic guitars.

I repeat -- no one.