griffin house.

i love live concerts. especially in small venues... squeezing myself through the crowds, climbing closer and closer to the front of the stage, to be able to look into the eyes of the talented musicians before me, to see them obliviously sweat-soaked, basking in the thrill of performance, to feel the hard/soft/quick/slow beat resonating deep within my chest, to have lyrics touch my soul and melodies stir my heart, to rock out and dance like nobody's watching.... just to live in that moment. i love it.

oddly enough, this is really a new thing i have come to discover about myself. so when my good friend claire sent out an email earlier this week about her latest band crush coming into town, i was all over it! stephen might have had plans with "the boys" but that wasn't going to stop me. besides, he's not as into live performances...except maybe when it comes to sports - figures.

anyway, it's a good thing i bought my tix online because by the time we showed up at jammin' java, the concert was well sold out. it's been forever since i've been there, but it's such a great venue - and brings me back to my old homebase in vienna, va. aw, memories. it wasn't long before we all linked up, with half of our cg present who decided this wasn't an opportunity worth missing... not many of us had heard of griffin house (yes, that's his actual name) but a year of claire's praises was convincing enough to bring us together!

after the band, sons of william, opened for gh, they then joined him as back-up. during their opening act, the one girl member handled the bass guitar, which was literally as big as she was! but could she play... she switched to electric with gh and just jammed - seriously, amazing.

over the course of the evening, we all fell in love with griffin's songs and stage personality. one thing that struck me the most was his at-ease approach to the mic... i have to say, chewing gum while singing and playing the harmonica certainly helped add to this vibe. gh's music could probably be classified as folk rock but pressed the limit in genres with many of his songs.

i found it even more endearing to find out my favorite song (the guy that says goodbye) of his was actually written about my friend's roommate's friend...you got that? claire almost died with jealously when she found this out as it is such a beautiful song - and i'm right there with her!!! it's funny how the mere touch of relevance makes music all that more powerful.

in short, i'm hooked. i just bought 3 of his cds on itunes, including his most recent release, flying upside down, that won't be on shelves for another 6 weeks. so if you are looking for some good new music, check him out. i say anyone who garners inspiration from the legends of johnny cash and tom petty are a-ok in my book. oh and did i mention he's been on tour with mat kearney?! yep, he's a keeper.

p.s. random but remember this commercial from valentine's day a year ago? that music is griffin's...waterfall. brilliant!