LOS ANGELES, CA- While I was waiting for the music to start up at the Troubadour, I ran into my old friend Chad who works in artist relations for D’Angelico Guitars. He was honestly impressed that I was out to see Marcus King headline the evening proclaiming, “You’re going to be impressed. This kid can play.”
Marcus King is the 21 year old singer, songwriter and guitarist for the band, and Chad was right. This young man can play. Grew was raised with the blues in his blood, and as a teen reached No. 8 on the Billboard Blues Albums Charts with his 2015 album Soul Insight, and following that album up in 2016 with a self titled sophomore album which climbed even higher to No. 2. With his third album, Carolina Confessions, slated for released on October 5, 2018, Marcus explained to Billboard:
“I wanted this record to focus a little bit more on songwriting and the structure of the tune itself […] the confessional side of things. Music, for me, is a way to say what’s on my mind and kind of a way to explain that — just like true confession, if you feel guilty and want to get some things off your chest. That’s how writing is and making music is for me.”
On September 9th, he gave Los Angeles a little taste of that soul-searching, confessional sound that he’s poured into his upcoming project.
I’m always amazed when I see young performers play way beyond their years. Sure, Marcus has been playing music all his life- I understand that his first gig was at the age of 8 when he took the stage with his father- but knowing that still didn’t prepare me for what I was going to see come to life on stage. The blues oozes from his finger tips, up, down and around the fret of his guitar. Just when he’s got you in a mood, he’ll throw in a little funk and/or soul to season his set with a little something extra, letting us all know that his more than just a blues man. He a music man.
It all came so natural to Marcus. It was effortless the way he imbued his sound with country one minute to southern rock the next, to funk … super funk … in another. And his players were in step with him every second of the way. When given opportunities to let their musical freak flags fly, each band mate jammed with abandon like their leader.
I was particularly impressed with those moments when Marcus let his soul shine through- with his voice and his playing- during songs like “The Man You Didn’t Know” (from the band’s self titled album). As he sings the introspective lyrics in his mature, gravelly voice, “You can remember me as the man you didn’t know,” he then let his guitar sing a response that will give you a reason to get to know him. For someone like me, who was just recently introduced to his repertoire, the performance of this song at The Troubadour was what made me a believer.
There’s a reason why contemporary legends like Warren Haynes praise Marcus King as a “Triple Threat”; this young man can really do it all. There’s no musical genre or human emotion that he can’t pull from, and he does it in a way that’s so seamless, that you’d be hard pressed to find someone his age to compare him to. That makes the anticipation of the release of his forthcoming coming album for me that much greater. I can’t wait to hear how he’s put it all together again.
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