Redbird (acoustic) @ The Helm -- 01/05/11

After seeing Redbird for the first time back in August, I had managed to miss all of their subsequent shows, so when an acoustic show popped up at some place called The Helm, I was glad I could actually make it. I had never even heard of The Helm, but the new restaurant/dinner club in downtown Vancouver ended up being quite nice, and a cool place to see an acoustic set like this. I hope they end up booking more shows.

But as for Rebdird themselves; the acoustic show features three of the members, John Sponarski on guitar, Geneva Gamble on backup vocals and shaker/tambourine and, of course, Savannah Leigh Wellman on acoustic guitar and lead vocals. It was a very intimate set, with both the cosiness of the restaurant and the fact that most people there were friends of the band both helping it be quite casual.
As with last time I saw them, I was struck by Savannah's voice, and the really fitting indie-folky-rootsy sound built around it. A couple songs also really stuck out, lyrically -- one titled "No Game" and the other I missed the name of -- and hope are on the upcoming EP, apparently due out in the spring. There were a couple times where there was a bit of a lull between songs, but nothing that stalled the momentum too much.
After a good 45 minutes or so, the main set ended with a cover of The Black Keys. I am always a fan of seeing bands play covers, to see how songs are interpreted, how an artist puts their own spin on something, and Savannah pulled off "Tighten Up" quite well, being different enough to make it unique, but still doing the song justice.
The encore was even more loose than the main set, as it seemed genuinely unplanned and the band just ended up jamming, with older songs and another cover, of Call It Off by Tegan & Sara.

It was quite a good show, and it wasn't as bad, ambient-noise-wise, as other shows in similar settings have been, and upped my anticipation for both the aforementioned EP, and the full band show next month at the Railway.