Review: Gary Clark Jr. Electrifies Packed Moore Theatre

Gary Clark Jr.
Gary Clark Jr.

As I arrived to the Moore Theatre on this lovely spring evening, the line outside the Moore Theatre stretched down the block for the amazing Gary Clark Jr. who has been on tour in support of his latest album, The Story of Sonny Boy Slim.

I was fortunate to have caught Gary Clark Jr. (for the first time) a few weeks earlier at the McDowell Mountain Music Festival in Phoenix, Arizona, and was so impressed that there was no way I was going to miss his performance at the Moore Theatre in Seattle.

Entering the venue, you could feel the energy from the sold-out crowd waiting in anticipation. Opening this evening was a band of sisters from Sweden, BASKERY, who have relocated to Los Angeles. Siblings Greta, Stella & Sunniva Bondesson played an energetic set of rock songs that were danceable and fun. When you see them on stage, they are always engaging with the audience, and they were a perfect opening band for the evening. I’ll certainly look forward to the next time they come to Seattle.

Baskery
BASKERY

As the lights dimmed, the band strolled out onto the stage, and emerging from the shadows was Gary Clark Jr., who has quickly become one of the emerging blues guitarists, bringing new found excitement to the electric blues genre. A tall and lanky presence on stage, Gary Clark Jr. plays his electric guitar with a smooth flowing style and then has the ability to completely rip it apart.

Mixing it up with his Gibson, Epiphone and Fender guitars, Clark displayed his amazing skills in electric blues. Rockin’ hard and furious, Clark plays with power and force, which takes it to another level. It’s exciting to see his continued rise in the music world.

Backing Gary Clark Jr. is a top notch band featuring Johnny Bradley on bass, King Zapata on Guitar and Johnny Radelat on Drums. These guys bring it in with some excellent playing in their own right. All said, Gary Clark Jr. and his band are one of those must-see bands touring the country right now. There are still a few more dates here in the Pacific Northwest, in Vancouver and Portland before they head on down the road to perform at Coachella.

(Check out the full gallery of shots here.)

Gary Clark Jr.
Gary Clark Jr.

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Peter Dervin

Peter Dervin Bio I was born in Los Angeles, raised on BOSS Radio KHJ 930AM listening to the Real Don Steele, grew up listening to Dr. Demento on KMET 94.7, graduated to Rodney Bengenheimer on KROQ-FM. Started collecting records in high school, I haven’t stopped. Moved to the Northwest in 1989. Became a disc jockey and program host on 90.7 KSER in Everett, I was there for 18 years. Owned a record shop from 1993-1995 called Orbit Records. Mike McCready from Pearl Jam bought a PJ 45 from me. I wrote music reviews for a monthly called “The Taste of Everett”. I was Editor of a trade publication called the “Northwest Landscape Professional” I had always been photographing at the concerts I’ve attended. In 2010, the Grateful Dead used my photos from 1980 on a Road Trips CD release. I then began the journey of taking my photography to the next level. I have photographed a who’s who of musicians, bands and artists. From Los Lobos to DEVO and everything in between. You can see my portfolio at www.peterdervin.com.

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