Gearing Up

I spent the week listening to music I appreciate but don’t always love.

To be clear – I appreciate it deeply. I think it’s brilliant, and I totally allow for the fact that the reason I don’t always love it has to do with my own biases and experience. Certainly I’ve got lots of friends who love it.

But tonight I’m going to a concert with Jacob Collier and his band, on his Djesse Vol. 3 World Tour (postponed from 2020). So I’ve spent the week digging deep, trying to better understand it and be ready to love the concert.

Everything about Jacob’s concerts appeals to me – his musical virtuosity, the group vocal harmony, the cool grooves and deep humanness of the music, and especially the way he works with the audience, in the tradition of Bobby McFerrin. I have zero doubt that we are going to be flat out amazed by the concert tonight.

And I’ll be ready because I’ve been gearing up. I understand the music better now, and while I still might choose The Hi-Lo’s for my vocal harmony fix first, his music has grown on me the deeper I’ve gotten into it.