Amos Lee at the State Theatre (06-28-2024)

06/28 Amos Lee with Mutlu at State Theatre Tour Dates 06/29 – Milwaukee, WI - Summerfest 07/01 – Ann Arbor, MI – Michigan Theater ** 07/03 - Grand Rapids, MI - Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts ** 07/05 – Cleveland, OH – House of Blues ** 07/06 – Columbus, OH – Southern Theatre ** 07/08 – Deerfield, MA – Tree House Brewing Company 07/11 – Lancaster, PA – American Music Theatre ** 07/13 – Atlantic City, NJ – Music Box at the Borgata 09/13 – Vail, CO – Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater † 09/14 – Dillon, CO – Dillon Amphitheater † 09/15 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre † 09/17 - Salt Lake City, UT - Red Butte Garden 09/19 – San Diego, CA – The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park † 09/21 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl † 09/23 – Los Angeles, CA – Greek Theatre † 09/24 – Saratoga, CA – The Mountain Winery † 09/25 – San Francisco, CA – The Masonic † 09/27 – Troutdale, OR – McMenamins Edgefield Amphitheater † 09/28 - Woodinville, WA – Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery † * w/ Special Guest Julia Pratt ** w/ Mikela Davis + w/ The Nashville Symphony ^ Amos Lee Solo Acoustic Performance # w/ Special Guest Mutlu † Co-Headline w/ Indigo Girls Read More Amos Lee I got a chance to watch Amos Lee: Live from the Artists Den DVD over the weekend. The Amos Lee performance was shot live at The Fox Theatre in downtown Tucson, Arizona, and was broadcasted ....

Downtown Minneapolis was treated to the soulful sounds of two Philadelphia singer-songwriters who have been described as musical brothers.

Mutlu

Mutlu opened the evening with a solo acoustic guitar set. A first generation American of Turkish descent, he found himself drawn to the music of Stevie Wonder, Bill Withers and Al Green. He has been a part of the Philadelphia music scene since 2003, and has developed a soulful, sweet voice that is bright, buoyant and just glided over the strings of his acoustic guitar as he drew in the crowd with “Damage” and “One Life With You.”

Then there were singalongs with “Stand by Me” and “Islands in the Stream”, but the highlight was “Board Games” a song in which Mutlu said, “Sets the mood of the night to get into sexy time.” And with an R&B whisper he made Candy Cane Lane and Chutes and Ladders seem a little more steamy.

I’m talking left foot yellow right foot green
Playing Twister, you know what I mean

Mutlu will return to the Twin Cities this summer, playing with Mark Joseph and Superior Siren at the Hook and Ladder on August 9th.

Amos Lee next took the stage with a band with two lead guitarists in Zach and Nikki on either side of Lee, as he sang “Built to Fall” and “Dreamland” with no instrument in hand.

Lee said that he has a deep appreciation of the Twin Cities, stating that one of his first musical gigs outside of Philadelphia was Bunkers. He then went on to talk about the support he received over the years with The Current and Cities 97. Oak on the Water got a shout out. He even mentioned he had friends in the crowd and they bought seats in the front row and were staring right at him.

Lee is releasing his eleventh studio album Transmission on the same day Mutlu plays at the Hook and Ladder. But before he sang “Beautiful Day” he said, “Releasing records is ridiculous but I’m still doing it.”

Still he was in a good mood and the crowd was receptive with rousing applause after each song as Lee granted ample time for his band to take the spotlight, Zach even switching from lead guitar, mandolin and even saxophone for his solos.

Then Lee made an audible and said he wanted to move up “Baby I Want You” an R&B love song. And as violet lights poured over the theater in an attempt to seduce the crowd with nary a board game, each member of the band took a solo. But by the time it was Solomen’s turn on bass, the show was stopped for there was a medical emergency in the front row. A gentleman lost consciousness as the whole theater became as quiet as an empty church.

Luckily the person gained consciousness after fifteen minutes and was taken out by wheelchair, but a pall remained.

Lee did his best to assuage the crowd with more stories about the Twin Cities, shouting “Skol” for all the sad Viking fans in the crowd, telling them he enjoyed watching his Eagles win the Super Bowl at U.S. Bank Stadium. Then a story about playing at the Fine Line before joking about all his reminiscing: “Let me get my cane.”

Then it was back to the music with a revised setlist. And after a song he wrote for his friends in the front row, a personal favorite, “Violin.” But instead of the full band with a swelling sound, it was just Lee with an acoustic guitar and a second voice, Solomon’s, both singing as a folk duo, taking Lee back to the beginning when he was a singer-songwriter playing venues in his hometown of Philadelphia.

Amos Lee at State Theatre, Minneapolis (28 June 2024)

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