Fans of artists like Jack Johnson, Dave Matthews Band and John Mayer will love the sound of Brad Cole. Cole creates a smooth mix of popular rock n’ roll with hints of the blues, which shows his Chicago roots. The music played smoothly and organically.
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Brad Cole |
Martyr
Chicago, Ill.
July 24, 2010
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Cole and his band played to a full house in Martyr’s Bar and Pub; a large open space dimly lit by votive candles, decorated with murals of music legends on the walls. After the show started it became difficult to find a seat at the bar or an open table. The band started the set off with several songs from the newly released album, Exile.
The audience could see the band having fun with their music on stage and their energy could be felt throughout the bar. Cole engaged the audience enthusiastically smiling into the crowd and jumping up and down. At least once Cole could be seen sporting an air guitar at the end of a song and dancing to the beat of the music as he sang and played guitar. It was clear he enjoyed being on stage and playing his music.
The crowd locked onto Cole’s groove and ran with it. Dancing and bopping their heads to the music and flowing with the sound they gave as much as they got. The crowd engaged with the band especially when he played “A Million Miles Away” which had an upbeat and fun energy to it.
However, after a while several of the songs began to blend together because of similarity in their chord progressions, lyric content and style. Cole even commented the songs were all basically “break up” songs. The audience’s interest in the music ebbed and flowed throughout the set sometimes paying more attention than others.
Throughout the evening the songs that stood out included more of a blues influence. The most intense song of the set came near the middle of the set when the music switched from a popular rock style to a grittier, earthy blues sound in the song “Monster.“ This song displayed a darkness none of the other songs seemed to explore and held the audience captive in its spell. He played with such feeling and vulnerability it easily stood out as the best moment of the evening.
The evening then continued on to some of the material off of Cole’s first album. However, nothing topped the edgy-blues feel of “Monster” and the set started to drag as the band continued to play more songs. The final song of the night picked up the pace and finished out the evening on a high note.
More information on Brad Cole can be found on his website -
www.bradcolemusic.com.
Cole’s new album Exile can be found on iTunes. And if you want to preview the music before you buy there are five or six songs available to listen to for free at -
www.myspace.com/bradcolemusic.
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Nice review!
Written by Guest on 2010-08-03 09:59:14
Brad plays around Chicago quite a bit...I've seen him at Elbo Room a few times. |
Written by Guest on 2010-08-03 16:24:02
I thought Brad Cole's concert was fantastic. It was impossible not do dance or bop to the music. Great voice and stylle and so good looking. |
Cole Show
Written by Guest on 2010-08-16 15:20:41
I have seen Brad play a few times now. He gives off great energy, his songs resonant and grab you and he is very engaged with his audience.
All in all a very good experience. I recommend him for a great night out with friends. |
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