Photos by: Chris Besaw
Review by : Kelly Besaw
Indigo Girls with special guest Lucy Wainwright Roche made a stop at the Beak and Skiff Apple Orchard in Lafayette, NY Friday June 25, and Saturday June 26. Indigo Girls, the politically charged duo from Atlanta Georgia brought their mix of folk-rock anthems of resistance, feminist outrage, LGBTQ rights, anti-capitalism, and power to the people to a socially distanced, but very happy bunch of fans. This was my first live music show since October of 2019, and I was overjoyed to be in attendance. The feeling of things being back to some new form of “normal” was in the air.
Opener Lucy Wainwright Roche was extraordinarily talented with a beautiful voice and a snarky sense of humor. Lucy joked, “before the pandemic I was on the road by myself for about twelve years and that made my a little strange. Then I spent the entire pandemic alone in my apartment so now you get the even stranger me.” Lucy alternated between melodies, questions from the audience and quirky stories, garnering ample applause and laughter from the crowd. Lucy was joined on stage by Lyris Hung, longtime violinist for Indigo Girls. Wainwright Roche ended her set with a melodic cover of Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down.” She later joined the Indigo Girls on stage for a portion of their set.
Indigo Girls comprised of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers have been making music together since high school. They are currently on tour for their latest release, Look Long. The duo took the stage to a hearty round of applause and cheers and welcomed the crowd with a, “thanks y’all!” The duo worked their way through their 35 plus year catalog of songs. They played a perfect variety of deep cuts and fan favorites including “Hammer and a Nail,” “Shame on You,” “Galileo,” and ended the evening with the well-known hit “Closer to Fine.” The duo was joined on stage on and off throughout their set by Lyris Hung and Lucy Wainwright Roche. Amy and Emily sang in perfect harmony the entire evening even though they stated that they had to “work on a few songs.”
Although the venue had socially distanced pods marked off for each group of ticketholders, by the end of the night fans gathered in front of the stage singing and dancing, reminding concertgoers that we really are just a little “Closer to Fine.”
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