Review and photos by Jaida Berkeheimer
Nestled firmly in Potrero Hill, the distinctly renowned Bottom of the Hill is a legendary rock venue that has been featuring upcoming artists since 1991, even being named the “best place to see live music in San Francisco” by Rolling Stone magazine back in 1999. However, the iconic club is sadly set to close by the end of this year, so I wanted to make sure to get some final shows in before its final act. In this spirit, last week I made my way over the bridge to check out Brooklyn’s ethereal indie-rock duo Widowspeak. By the feel of it, so did everyone else in the city. Attendees sardined themselves into the sold out show, with the venue practically full by the time the opener started her set.
Portland, Maine’s indie-folk darling Geneviève Beaudoin, known on stage as Dead Gowns, beautifully serenaded the eager audience with a stripped-down set: her guitar, one other band member on bass and a drum machine, and her gorgeous tender yet sultry voice. The crowd was also heavily engaged with her banter between songs, answering “NO!” in unison when Beaudoin asked “if you’ve been no contact with someone for five years, would you tell them that you made a whole record about them?”
If the venue wasn’t already full by the time Dead Gowns was on, it was practically filled to the very brim when the night’s headliner, Widowspeak, hit the stage. Touring for their new album Roses, the stage was adorned with jumbo-sized paper roses. However, the cute decor was quickly overshadowed as an intimidating, and slightly frightening, dog mascot who came on stage with the band, leaving as quickly as he came.
Without much explanation, the band promptly began their set with “The Hook,” the nostalgic and melancholy opening track of their album. The crowd seemed unfazed as they were now being graced by heavenly guitar twangs and softly alluring vocals. The spotlight was evenly shared between the duo, consisting of Molly Hamilton on vocals and Robert Earl Thomas on guitar. Throughout the night, Thomas would step forward into the light and get lost in a guitar solo, playing with such gusto and joy that it could be felt throughout the room.
The night blurred together as the set continued, with most songs sounding relatively similar: layers of cosmic country indie rock, soft and atmospheric, shimmering in the stage lights. The song of the night was the encore’s finale “Money,” A glistening fade out with her reverberating vocals floating beautifully over blissful jangly acoustic guitars.
As the show came to a close, the absolutely packed club held onto every word, every note, every second. A blissful night, shoulder to shoulder, Widowspeak truly reminded us of how beautiful and uniting live music can truly be.
