Emancipator at the Tally Ho Theatre 4/22/2016
By Michael Tucker
Earth Day 2016. It had been a week from hell: I was wrapping up several big projects for my third semester in college, preparing for finals week, and had even found myself getting uncharacteristically heated over inconsequential things like Facebook political discussions. The sun had just settled into Taurus, a sign which is all about celebrating the physical aspects of life along with its sensory pleasures such as music, food, and beauty, and relaxing into the delightfulness of early spring. I desperately wanted some of life’s Taurean pleasures— along with some much-needed musical healing and dancefloor liberation. I felt the need to celebrate life and our beautiful planet and all that it provides for us. I was super-stoked to get the opportunity to see Emancipator live at The Tally Ho Theatre in Leesburg, Virginia with my partner, and best show buddy ever, Tara. Having seen him a few years back at Rootwire Music and Arts Festival and having followed his music since, I looked forward to a special evening of unfettered musical bliss.
Tara and I headed out to the Tally Ho early, after having a super-delicious Thai meal in, of all places, a sweet, little restaurant connected to a gas station. (I’m glad we didn’t let that scare us away like we almost did—it rocked.) We got to the Tally Ho early enough to dance our butts off to Space Apes and get down to the mind-bending grooves of Bunk Buddha. We also had an interesting conversation with a former classmate of Emancipator (who is Doug Appling) wherein she told us about getting to see him play music at William and Mary during her college years. More and more people kept tricking in to the Tally Ho, which if you don’t know, is a cool spot to see a show. The venerable Leesburg landmark has been in operation continuously since it opened in 1932 and allows for an intimate musical experience. It’s the kind of place where you can just feel the history within its walls, and it has several really cool touches. Check out the picture of the fox next time you’re there. The space also allows for a really intimate show. The crowd, which was incredibly eclectic, and featured all types of humans from EDM kids to well-dressed, middle-aged couples to kind, familiar faces from the festival scene, had grown big enough to build a nice vibe, yet remained small enough for plenty of room for dancing.
A palpably electric hush descended on the crowd when Emancipator took to the stage with violin virtuoso, Ilya Goldberg at his side. When the lush opening notes of “1993,” (my favorite track on Emancipator’s latest album! Seven Seas) filled the Tally Ho, my stressful week dissolved instantly and, from the looks of the blissed-out crowd, so did everyone else’s. The gorgeously soulful, downtempo song, along with the superb visuals projected behind Emancipator, was just what the medicine man ordered to set the crowd sailing away into an evening of artistic transcendence. The pacing of the show was genius, alternating vibes and tempos fluidly from a nineties warehouse party to a dreamy, tripped out chill-space in the middle of the woods. It was beautiful to watch Emancipator work the crowd: he was truly a master at building tension to a fever pitch and then getting the crowd to dance it all out in an epic moment of release. His kind, expressive facial expressions took his connectedness to the crowd to a level that is rare in this time and place. There were several instances where the innovative beat patterns and unexpected textures hit uncharted territory: I had never heard anything quite like them. The set list was heavy on tracks from Seven Seas: “Ocelot” had the crowd slinking around like big cats in the rainforest with its lush, chiming sounds while Emancipator made cool sounds on a hand-held device; “The Key” kept building and building with its liberating swell and resonant spaces until the insanely played, climactic peak of Goldberg’s violin broke me open and I danced myself right out of my body; “All in Here” had me utterly hypnotized with its haunting melody and “Canopy” with its chants, beats and mystical feel gave me that sense of wonder and full-bodied, earth-dancing feeling of “trance-endence” I had been seeking. Other highlights included “Minor Cause,” which has always made me feel like I’m joyfully, paradoxically dancing out my sadness and heartbreak and a trip-hop remix of Mgmt’s “Kids” that had Tara giving me a knowing smile until we were both singing along. After playing a generous encore, the show came to a close.
We said goodbye to a few friends and hugged our new dancefloor pals and made our way out into the cool night air wrapped in a comfortable patchwork of organic musical textures and innovative beats that still played on in our heads. The show was everything I had hoped it would be: alive, utterly transcendent, multi-textured, connected, celebratory, emotional— and it was perfect liberation.
Check out Emancipator’s musical offerings and tour dates at:
http://www.emancipatormusic.com/
Emancipator is headlining F.A.R.M. FEST this year at Paradise Lake Campground in Hammonton, NJ July 22-24. This is one of the best venues I have ever seen: beautiful pine- barrens in the middle of nowhere. The main stage is on a sandy beach in front of a lake. Check it out.
For tickets and information: http://www.farmmusicandarts.com/
He is also playing at the phenomenal Resonance Music and Arts Festival at Legend Valley in Thornville, Ohio September 22-24, which is in my opinion, one of the best festivals currently going. Check out the lineup-and don’t miss this one.
For tickets and information: http://resonancemusicfest.com/
The Tally Ho Theatre is a cool spot to check out a show. For information on upcoming shows:
