Nicky P, Chris Rosenquest and Daniel Chase
Ana Mallozzi, Lily Costner and Kayla Riengleheim
Wednesday July 8th, I enticed Nicole to come along for the special edition of Writers in the Round at Tazza Caffe, with the promise of a delectable hamburger for dinner once we arrived. Normally occurring the first and third Wednesday of every month, they offered an additional installment this second Wednesday to coincide with the citywide Sound Session Festival. Nicole and I arrived in plenty of time to order our food and a drink before the festivities began. Chris Rosenquest was at the helm, Mcing for the night, flanked by Nicky P and Daniel Chase, noticeably absent was Kris Hansen who I later found out would no longer be able to perform at the Writers in the Round series. After introducing the night and welcoming the guests, Chris mentioned a second round of songwriters, comprised of Kayla Ringelheim, Lily Costner, and Ana Mallozzi would be playing the intermission this week, furthering the specialty of this edition of Writers in the Round.
Chris Rosenquest started the night with a number I would guess to be called “Hannah,” It had a good rhythm and the verses were traded by Chris and Daniel Chase. Nicky P hopped in adding some backing vocals and a few lead licks to round out the song. The writers were certainly building from and playing with each other’s songs more since the last time I’d seen Writers in the Round. I was primed and ready to record the first number, or so I thought, after about 4 seconds my camera gave me an out of space error, and I realized I’d left my 8gb data card at home. After a boneheaded sigh and a self Benny Hill I dug through my man-purse and found the standard 2gb card with which the camera came and readied for the next song. Daniel Chase’s “Save You:”
07.08.09 Daniel Chase performing “Save You”
Daniel started in with his steady rhythm and tender lyrics. It was evident Chris was listening for the feel of the song, and by the first chorus was lending backing vocals and sparse lead riffs during the second verse forward. Daniel sang this staple of his sets with soul and conviction before handing the spotlight to Nicky P for a great rendition of “Left Without Clothes:”
07.08.09 Nicky P performing “Left Without Clothes”
I’ve seen Nicky P play out once before, and this is certainly one of his signature catchy numbers I remembered. I recognized the tune from the opening riff strums and smiled. Daniel was enjoying it as well, mouthing along the lyrics of the verses and lending backing vocals during the chorus. Some in the crowd were bopping along and and singing as well, certainly a feel good song raring to get the crowd into itself. Chris returned to the stage area after adjusting the sound and began to explain Kris Hansens’s absence and subsequent withdrawal from Writers in the Round. Chris began to test his loop mechanism before breaking out a newer song, “Wood:”
07.08.09 Chris Rosenquest performing “Wood”
Chris belted out the first poetic verse with his definitively gritty voice using little instrumentation to lend further depth to the lyrics. Once he began to sample and loop his guitar and some beat boxing Chris proved his place as a one man band. My mind’s eye drew comparisons to Keller Williams, mostly through his use of the looping technology which is becoming ever more popular as of late. Always anxious to stop recording and save space and battery life, I fell fully for the bait when he took a long false stop, I had to fumble with the camera to record a bit of the guitar finale, which had to be edited into the video. Nicole began to remind me that my burger was probably pretty cold by now and I should start in on it and save the recording for later. I agreed and began to enjoy my dinner as Daniel started in on another of his tender signature numbers, “Baby Slow Down.” I was mumbling along as I stuffed my face and took few notes, I remember thinking it was being played in a faster rhythm than I’d previously heard, and Chris was lending some lead riffs and backing vocals during this performance. Nicky P followed suit with his metaphorical “California Sunrise.” Another of his songs that was “etched in my mind” from previous performances. I had the burger downed and the camera readied for Chris’s next song in the round “Fifty Seven:”
07.08.09 Chris Rosenquest performing “Fifty Seven”
Another of Chris’s poetic songs packed with words and imagery. I’d never heard this one before and was impressed with the intricacy of his guitar work, from delicate to fierce. Following the round Daniel took the next song and played a Ray Lamontagne cover:
07.08.09 Daniel Chase covering Ray Lamontagne
I thought the song had a great rhythm and feel, Daniel sang it well, and inspired me to check out some of Ray Lomontagne’s tracks. Pretty good stuff, I’ll have to check him out if he comes around. Nicky took to the microphone next and offered a toast to Mr. Hansen before playing a song of his I’d had yet to hear “Open Spaces:”
07.08.09 Nicky P performing “Open Spaces”
It was another catchy folk tune. Nicky sang with power and passion his relate able verses. Chris added some backing vocals during an early verse and later a beat box jam. Each gentleman in the round took another song before taking a set break. Rosenquest played a cathartic piece “When are You Gonna Change,” followed by what I believe to be an original of Daniel Chase’s which he played into “All Along the Watchtower.” A song most frequently credited to Bob Dylan, but I’ve heard begrudged claims that it was “borrowed” from Richie Havens. Nicky P played a heartfelt number for his final piece before the set break called “Gathering Angels.” The camaraderie all set between the musicians was apparent and this edition of Writers in the Round featured more integrated experimentation between their songs.
 Kayla Ringelheim |
 Lily Costner |
 Ana Mallozzi |
|---|
Chris announced a special treat for this Sound Session edition of Writers in the Round, as Kayla Ringelheim, Lily Costner and Ana Mallozzi took the stage. Having run out of media and it getting late in the evening for a work night, Nicole and I only had time to stay for one round from each of the ladies, for which I’m certainly glad we did. Kayla Ringelheim took the helm at the keyboard and played a lovely up beat number using piano tones and chords, singing softly and with heart. Lily Costner played next, I would guess a song called “Love to Love You as I Do.” She used a capo and sang gently with a slight vibrato. Ana played the last song for which we could stay, a great number which was very finger pick driven, which complimented her jazzy vocal style and intonations. All three ladies made their mark and I will certainly look forward to seeing them play out more to learn more of their varying styles. Nicole and I took off early knowing there wouldn’t be anything good on TV, but it was Business Time, being Wednesday after all.
