iReports: Best of the Fest

Monday, June 8

The World Goes Country at AristoMedia Global Showcase

Tradition and innovation are among the pillars of Country Music, each complementing the other. This was made clear on Tuesday, June 9, at The Second Fiddle, on Lower Broadway. History adorned the venue's bare brick walls, in the old radios and Edison Home Phonograph, the photo of Hank Williams with a very young Hank Junior and, behind glass, the faded remnant of a Confederate flag.

But on the stage, artists from six European nations as well as Canada demonstrated that Country Music is a living thing, adaptable to and enhanced by the cultures to which it migrates. At the AristoMedia Global Showcase, co-sponsored by CMA, Digital Rodeo and NiteTrain Coach, these performers had room to rock hard or whisper while offering their perspectives on Country Music.

Emceed by Robert Reynolds, formerly bassist with The Mavericks, the show began with Brianie, who opened with "Daddy's School," a tribute to hard-working fathers with lyrics and music that made it a companion piece to Merle Haggard's "Mama Tried." Her other songs, including the heartfelt ballad "I'm Not Ready Yet" and the paean to empowerment "Butterfly in a Hurricane," established strong credentials for this young British singer and songwriter.

Dressed in red shirt and black vest, with yellow neckerchief completing his Western look, French artist Pierre Lorry dedicated much of his set to extolling the universal appeal of American roots music. "I was in Russia, in Japan, in Yemen, and everywhere, if I sing this song, everybody knows how to sing along." Lorry then launched into a heavily accented yet irresistible rendition of "Oh, Happy Day," which this Nashville sang as robustly as those listeners on Lorry's faraway rambles.

Australia's Dianna Corcoran charmed the audience with a playfully exaggerated, Southern-drawled "How y'all doin'?" Joined by Rebecca Lynn Howard, she performed their co-write "Then There's Me," spinning light and airy harmonies over a nostalgic lyric about the idylls of rural life. They closed with the amusing "Thank You for Cheating on Me," documenting a jilter lover's revenge.

Hailing from Canada, Greg Hanna sang in a strong, clear tenor, his pronunciations seeming more Deep South than Up North. He impressed on several fronts, with his emphatic guitar style, strong compositional chops as documented by the dramatic key change from verse to chorus on "Song in My Head" and a big finish with "It's a Man's Job," a hook-driven tune that seems perfectly suited for video treatment.

Norway is home to Tore Andersen, but with his agreeable, low-key stage presence, he looked right at home in a honky-tonk spotlight. Backed by "the two Aarons," fiddler/mandolinist Aaron Taylor and bassist Aaron Oliver, he presented original works such as "Ain't Life Sweet" and "Right Around the Corner" in smooth mid-tempo settings before revealing a deft Everly Brothers feel on his latest single, "Goodbye Blues."

Known for his covers of classic Country tunes, Rolf Fritschi segued between a quiet, heavily accented speaking voice and a singing style that might have been honed in Bakersfield. His twangy performance of Josh Turner's "Your Man" in particular seemed perfect for a long-haul playlist – not surprising, since Fritschi works as truck driver back home in Switzerland.

Canada's Codie Prevost, with frequent partner Allison Tymiak on fiddle, played a full hand throughout his set. His guitar rang solid and hit the rhythm pocket, and his breadth as a writer showed as he addressed the subject of drinking from two contrasting positions – tragic on "Quicksand," festive on "Next Weekend."

From Western Australia, Corey Colum cut an imposing figure, tall, broad and clad in black. A confident and expressive guitarist, he showed a Doc Watson influence in his self-accompaniment on "Steam Engine," a eulogy to a bygone era of railroading, and "Food on the Table," on which he underscored the homespun eloquence of his words with sophisticated chord movement on his instrument.

The afternoon concluded on a high note as England's David Bradley took command. Resident now in Nashville, he brought his full band onstage, including two backup vocalists, and launched into his original tune "Soak It Up." Its thumping beat shifted subtly from one nuance to the next, echoing reggae, Stevie Wonder and Van Morrison in sequence. Yet Bradley tied it together with lively stage patter and, like all who preceded him, a foundation in Country that encourages artists around the world to nurture their unique creative resources.

-- Bob Doerschuk