SAN FRANSISCO, CA- It doesn’t get much more outlaw country, than Canada, right? They’ve got moose, tons of hockey, maple syrup, wilderness galore, and now up and comer, Colter Wall. Oh yeah, want another Canadian surprise? Colter Wall is only 24 years old. That’s actually only partially shocking. Stop reading this, watch one of the videos of him singing and then come back here to this spot. See what I mean? He sounds like a weathered 70-year-old who has definitely seen some shit go down. Like, some real badass things in the Canadian backcountry that would make our jaws drop. Makes you think, what else is Canada hiding up there?
I can’t say San Francisco is the most versed in country music. Most people would probably conjure up images of 1960’s, free-spirited jam bands, when they think of this region. Currently, with the tech industry take over in the Bay Area, I’m not even sure what our music scene is exactly. That doesn’t mean we all can’t join together and enjoy some amazing music, though.
So what might’ve been different than Colter Wall’s usual “country” crowd, out here in San Francisco we managed to get the tech bros, folk fans, and indie snobs to unite together, in favor of this young man’s talented journey. Very refreshing to see this sold out crowd join forces in stomping feet, clapping hands, and howling to the same beat. Great American Music Hall, where this show was held, always tends to have great and rambunctious audiences. Being super close to the front, it was also nice to see everyone in the balcony getting just as much into the performance as the people on the main floor.
I had to see Colter Wall in person to believe the hype was real. To believe that his voice truly sounded beyond his years. What was revealed, was even more astounding. Yes, his voice really does sound that aged and wise. Even when he paused to chat with the audience in between songs, his voice still sounded like a man who has lived a thousand lives. It’s not just his voice though, the way he tells stories in his lyrics is quite impressive.
That kind of storytelling is almost unseen these days. His lyrics are dark and brooding, from tales of guns, weed, love, drinking, and chasing death faster than you think is possible. To me, the song that displays these themes the most is, “Kate McCannon”, a tale of romance that ends with murder. To see this song performed live was incredible. The endearing love story, that builds up with the backing band to point blank, where his main character ‘put three rounds into Kate McCannon’ without any remorse or regret. Just immaculate country music, as our hero turned villain rides off into the sunset. A story that needs no perfect ending.
Colter Wall only has two full length records to his name, 2017’s Colter Wall, and 2018’s Songs of the Plains. It seemed that he divided up his setlist pretty evenly to include a lot of material from both, getting a nice mix of him singing solo with his guitar, but also with the rowdy band backing him up as well.
For such a new and young artist, this crowd had him fully supported as if he were our own. People were coming in from all around the Bay Area to catch him before his next sold out show, at an even bigger venue. Which is inevitable now. It will happen, mark my word. Then he’ll have even more enthralling Wild West (Canadian) stories to tell.
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LIVE CLIPS
