Esther Rose is on the verge. Though the folk songstress has been chugging steadily along for damn near a decade, she seems to be hitting her stride with her newest album Want (REVIEW). From her beginnings in the New Orleans folk and country scene cultivated by peers like the Deslondes, Rose has continued to evolve with a sound that feels right now with its thoughtful lyrics and poppier tones. Guided and perhaps inspired by newfound sobriety and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (read about it in her latest Substack), Want is by far her most musical and lyrically adventurous album yet. Clearly, the word is getting out too, as was evidenced by the packed, sold-out crowd that came to see her at the Showdown Saloon in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, March 5th.
From the opening notes of “New Bad” with its catchy harmonies and proper amount of rocking to set things off, Rose’s set felt joyous. Both she and her bandmates were all smiles, genuinely touched that so many people had come out on a dreary winter Thursday night to see her. They reciprocated with the kind of performance that felt electrifying and buzzy, as if on the cusp of something bigger. You could hear this in newer numbers like “The Clown” (introduced by Rose as a “sexy clown song”), and the tender, radiant folk-rock of “That’s My DJ.” While lots of artists play the sober card these days, Rose seemed to reflect on her drinking days in a way that didn’t feel downtrodden as she played the playful and aptly titled “Had To,” a pedal steel-laden ode to her time touring and partying with her pals the Deslondes. It was fitting that she followed this up with a grungy take on “Ketamine” with Kunal Prakash cutting in with a Ween-style guitar solo. As Rose worked her way through tunes like the bouncy alt-country ear nugget “Chet Baker,” and the new tune “Skyscraper” with its garage punk undertones and chorus chant with the audience, she only gained more momentum.
Rose has likely picked up quite a few new fans as she has shifted into a slightly more indie pop direction with Want, but she was happy to dig into her older material and her country-folk New Orleans era with tunes like the lively “Money Tree,” the swinging honky tonk of “Wanton Way of Loving,” and a version of her lighthearted folk romp “Jump Down Baby” that practically started a full-on dance party. She even shared a taste of a new tune called “Piedra” that she wrote with Kevin Morby, a fine work of poignant and sharpened lyricism that showcased her more expansive range.
Throughout the hour-plus set, it was hard to say whether it was Rose or the audience that was more jazzed. Each song seemed to strike a special chord, and Rose carried herself with the magnetic confidence of a seasoned performer who, after years of grinding away, finally seems destined for bigger stages. Considering that the Showdown is booked by the team behind Portland’s beloved Pickathon festival, it seems all but certain that this performance earned Rose a slot on the lineup where she will capture even more fans.
