My work day just started, and it’s already feeling a little bumpy. I’m not going to get in my head about it. I hope for smooth sailing once I get caught up from some issues that popped up overnight. This is different from my usual course of action. Typically, when I walk into work and have a mess, I instantly get into a bit of a funk and can’t seem to shake the feeling of defeat. Why am I not feeling that way today? Because of the feeling that is still radiating from my soul after seeing mehro and King Isis at the 7th Street Entry on Wednesday night.
Let’s start with the opening act- King Isis. Hailing from Oakland, California, Isis kicked off their set, mentioning that this was not only their first time in Minnesota but also their first tour, and they were feeling the nerves a little bit. Starting a set off with a statement like that differs from how I suggest starting off a performance, but it worked when it came to King Isis’ music. There was something sweet and innocent about the overall delivery of their tracks that matched this “I’m nervous” sentiment, but, at the same time, you could feel just how comfortable they were behind a microphone and with a guitar in their hands. It was a brilliant dynamic that had me as intrigued as it did, falling head over heels in love with this human.
It would be so easy to call King Isis a singer-songwriter, but their set had so much more than that. Sure, the songs were primarily soft and sweet, but there were moments when you could hear their voice break due to the emotion each word had. On top of that, you were treated to a little bit of everything from angsty grunge vibes to a more smoky jazz sound. It was one of those sets where, although definitely a bit more lowkey than I tend to go for, I was left hanging on every word. I adored their original songs and didn’t feel the need for them to play a cover, but when they jumped into a unique cover of a Nirvana song, I knew that King Isis was someone to watch. They played around with the composition of this song in a beautifully creative way, leaving you with a sense of knowing the song because of the classic nature of the track while also giving you a whole new track. Long story short, I was in love with King Isis and was bummed when they had to leave the stage to make room for the headlining act.
After just two songs, mehro stopped his band and told the young audience that he wanted us all to get centered before continuing. He admitted that it would get a bit weird and then proceeded to do a breathing exercise with the audience. It was a bit cheesy, but by the time he directed us all to take our third deep breath and exhale, I realized that this was impacting me. Instead of worrying if I had turned the oven off before I left the house or not (don’t worry, I did, but it was one of those things that was in the back of my head), I found myself entering a beautiful and peaceful meditative state. This moment continued to deepen as mehro told us all to lock eyes with a stranger and then smile. Again, the amount of cheese he displayed would have made Wisconsin happy, yet there I was, falling for his every word. It was almost as if he had me in a trance, and I honestly didn’t mind.
Joined on stage by two bandmates, mehro’s sound, as mentioned, had a very infectious energy about it while remaining full of heart and emotion. There were moments throughout his headlining set where I couldn’t help but dance around to the beat a little bit, but others where I felt like I was being hit by a wave of emotions and, at points, it almost became overwhelming. I may have never heard of mehro before this show yet, after just a couple of songs, I felt such a deep connection with this human. It’s hard to explain, but again, it was as if he had me under his spell, and I was just captivated on a whole other level as his words seeped deep into my bones.
This connection was new for me, but not for those around me. I watched in awe as the kids surrounding me were singing every word while also being in a trance-like state. Maybe I’m being dramatic, but there is something so addictive and comfortable about mehro’s whole aura. The packed audience and how everyone seemed to gravitate closer to the stage when mehro took the stage compared to King Isis’ set made sense.
