Emily Wells
Largo - April 29, 2010
On the surface Emily Wells seems like the prototypical East Coast hip-hop-by-way-of-music-school-smarty-pants-wunderkind you'd expect from this generation. Thing is-she's based out of Los Angeles and probably has more in common with Ani DiFranco than either Biggie or Brahms.
Although I had only a passing familiarity with Wells before her stop at Largo during her current tour, she has developed quite the following with her various local appearances and shows across the country. Dressed in a simple shirt with the word "love" sprawled across and purple pants, Wells was more than a little unassuming when she came out onto the Largo stage and her demeanor did little to dispel this notion. But then a funny thing happened: the music started and my ears immediately picked up.
Wells' two piece bass and percussion section soon settled into a funky groove, unexpected by me. At her side and all around, she had quite the musical arsenal at her disposal-violin, several guitars, a ukulele, many electronic gadgets, even a toy Melodica (one of those small keyboards with a wind pipe that runs through it) but she always seemed at home amidst her setup. Everything had its purpose and she never seemed to fiddle about (no pun intended).
Watching her perform, Wells seemed the restless type. Her ambition was just barely held intact by the myriad tools at her disposal. Despite this, Wells presents a distinct and clear vision with her sound. While it's impossible to pigeonholed her to one particular genre or style as the show ran the gamut from folk to hip-hop to classical to rock to bluegrass (I think), it was all filtered through Wells' particular sensibilities. And it's here that her very unique talent is able to shine through.
Beyond her abilities as a multi-instrumentalist, Wells' vocal abilities also surprised. Her range may be limited but it seems as though she's aware of her own restrictions and works well within them.
While I enjoyed her set at Largo this evening, with all these influences swirling around her I felt as though Wells may either be ahead of her time or just slightly behind it. That's not so much a criticism as it is my opinion that she really doesn't fit in with what's out there right now and any contemporaries I could name here would be such in name only but maybe that's part of the appeal. Emily Wells is something different in a landscape awash with mediocrity - and that is something to be encouraged. |
