Allegra Krieger Brings Warmth To 7th Street Entry on a Chilly And Rainy Thursday Night

I knew it would be a long drive to the 7th Street Entry on Thursday night. Not only was I staying at my brother’s to watch his dog, where I didn’t know the drive to one of my favorite venues like the back of my hand, but it was pouring down rain for the first time in what felt like ages. I was a bit anxious as I hit the road. Did I leave myself enough time? Was I going to get lost on my way there? Were my cats at my own house doing okay? Will my brother’s dog get into something she shouldn’t while I was out? A million thoughts and mini-panics running through my head, but the second I walked over the threshold of the 7th Street Entry in downtown Minneapolis, all of that chaotic chatter stopped.

I was missing my own bed, my own cats, and my own house after a weekend of travel and now a weekend at my brother’s but that’s nothing compared to how much opening act hemlock is probably feeling. hemlock has been on the road for nearly eleven months at this point, and even though fighting a nasty, non-infectious lung crud on Thursday night, nothing was going to stop this amazingly talented musician from giving the audience a heck of an opening performance.

hemlock’s voice was soft, as was their music. Part of this could be attributed to that nasty lung thing they were dealing with on Thursday night, but honestly, I think that’s also a reflection of their style. It’s soft and almost whimsical at times, but at others, it’s nothing short of heartbreakingly tragic. The words they sang flew into my soul, and I was enamored by the way they string together certain words to evoke a true sense of emotion and, well, feeling. Whether hemlock was singing one of their heart felt songs or reading a passage from Rob Gray’s ‘The Book of Delights’, everything hemlock did on stage was full of intention and, more importantly, passion. Sure, hemlock’s overall sound wasn’t the loudest thing I’ve heard all week, but it was definitely one of the most powerful.

Philadelphia-based Greg Mendez continued this notion of understated power as he took the stage and instantly jumped into a set that, like that of hemlock, made me feel everything but also drifted me away from everything at the same time. There was something super organic about Greg’s songs. They were short but absolutely packed a punch. Think a little Death Cab For Cutie but with a bit more of a Bright Eyes attitude. I loved how Greg’s words were simple, but when put together the way he did, they really hit hard. Don’t get me wrong, things were all business with Greg as he spent very little time chatting with the audience, but, at the same time, there was something almost carefree about his set.

After a couple of solo songs accompanied only by his guitar or small keyboard that sat on his lap, Greg invited a friend to come and beef up the sound a little bit. The vocal harmonies between these two amazing humans had me stunned. Don’t get me wrong, I was super busy licking up every word of every song that Greg was singing, but there were moments when the words didn’t matter. All that mattered was how chills were running up my spine purely due to the harmonious sounds created by the two on stage. Much like hemlock never seems to stop with the touring, Greg never seems to stop with the recording. With twelve releases out there already, there’s plenty of material from this musician to dig into, so what are you waiting for? Start digging!

Closing out the soft and sensitive yet full of life and passion show on Thursday night was New York City-based Allegra Krieger. I know I sound like a broken record at this point, but Allegra Krieger’s sound was another one of those sounds that felt so oddly understated for how much power was packed behind every word and beat. One of the many things that really stood out to me about Allegra’s music was her words. I know that’s a given. As you know, I’m a lyrics lady, which draws me to a song for the most part, but I would be remiss not to touch on how raw and vulnerable her words were. Allegra wasn’t afraid to pour her heart and soul onto the intimate venue stage, leaving it all out there for the good-for-a-rainy-Thursday crowd to feel. It was impressive and, at times, almost a little overwhelming. It was as if I was peeping into Allegra’s life in a very intimate way, but I had never met this human before. Dramatic? Sure, but it was truly a beautiful aspect of her set.

The power of Allegra Krieger struck me. That goes beyond just the words and into her actual performance. There was never a super big crash of sound at any point throughout her set, yet I felt her sonic power in a way that I just can’t quite put into words. Her voice, although full of passion and emotional undertones, hit me like a ton of bricks. Sure, it was soft, but its weight made it feel ridiculously heavy. I want to expand on this, and I really do, but as I sit here trying to find the right words to describe it, I find myself lost. It was just one of those things that words can not do justice to, and the only thing I can tell you is to go catch Allegra when you can.

I wasn’t really in the mood for a quiet and acoustic-based show when I walked into the 7th Street Entry on Thursday night. My head was going a million miles an hour, and I wanted something loud and aggressive to help calm them all down. That being said, my gut said that this was the show for me on Thursday night, and, like usual, my gut was right. It was just what I needed and was the perfect way to spend a rainy and cold Thursday night.