Live Music Review // Abigail Lapell / Frank Critelli, Chris Bousquet, Ray Neal at Cafe Nine, New Haven CT June 5th 2024
Additional photos can be found here :::
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1495535637843319&type=3
I'm not sure when the last time I went to Cafe Nine was but apparently they have a food menu now. They also have a giant cassette hanging above the tables, so I feel right at home. This was one of those shows where if you missed it, you really don't know what you're missing, but also Cafe Nine was fairly full so there weren't too many people missing it because it felt like a packed house.
This show was originally going to be Frank Critelli and Chris Bousquet opening up separately, but then Ray Neal showed up and so the three of them played together, both in the rounds and as a trio. Each artist played two songs solo- except for Chris Bousquet who played three- and then the trio played two songs together to close out the set.
This was great, passionate music and it shouldn't have been missed to begin with, but it also just goes to show that anything can happen in the Connecticut music scene and so you're better off going to things and being part of surprises such as this rather than finding out about them after the fact. This was truly such a treat to see and I'm not sure when we'll see it happen again, but I'm glad I was there for it this time.
One thing that bothers me about shows at Cafe Nine is that people don't know when to shut up. I'm not sure why someone would pay a cover to go into a bar and then pay to drink on top of that, so I'm assuming if you're paying money to get into a show like this you're also there for the music. So my point is, people are there to see Abigail Lapell, for example, and not to hear some guy in the back loud talking.
More than once, someone else who was there to actually experience the music told this person to be quiet and I don't want to give them any more attention than I already have but seriously, what is wrong with people? I don't want to go all old man here, but back in my day we respected the stage. If you feel the need to be loud and obnoxious either shut it or go outside.
But no one at this show was going to let that one person ruin our collective experience. Abigail Lapell went through songs from both her newest album and previous albums. There is this sound where it's folk and it's rock and at times it can be country but it doesn't really ever go full country. And as much as the music is right on, the voice of Abigail Lapell is really what people should be listening to.
As someone who listens to entirely too much music I understand the idea of "studio magic" and so when I heard Abigail Lapell as a recording I was so impressed, but then to hear her voice sound exactly as amazing live is just unbelievable. She truly has one of those voices that even if you're not a fan of the music you have to respect that she can do that.
For a little while I thought that the music of Abigail Lapell was sad, simply because it doesn't always feel upbeat and happy, but I don't think "sad" is the right word. I think back to the days of artists like Elvis Presley where people would be crying at his shows- not happy tears, not sad tears, but just feeling emotions because they were in the presence of Elvis Presley. People were fainting at his shows and I get it now.
Abigail Lapell has that same way of connecting and powering a crowd where you just feel like you're apart of something special because you are. During "Anniversary Song" there is this part after the chorus that comes back and sings "Happy Anniversary". It hits me every time when I listen to the album at home, but live it just hit even harder. The music may or may not be sad or happy, but it's definitely emotional. If you have a soul, you will feel something while listening to Abigail Lapell.
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