Ingrid Michaelson's A Summer Night Out Tour

Last night, Ingrid Michaelson brought her latest tour to the recently renovated The Ritz in Raleigh, NC. On her A Summer Night Out Tour, she is playing a different city almost every night during the month of June and playing songs she hasn't performed often on past tours. Her set included some of her more recent songs off of Lights Out, as well older fan favorites including "The Way I Am," "You and I," "Keep Breathing" and "Overboard."

To Raleigh, she brought with her Oh Honey and Jukebox the Ghost.  Both openers brought something warm and fun to the stage, but Jukebox the Ghost in particular rocked. I didn't have an extensive knowledge of them before last night, but they made me a fan. Along with their songs, they covered "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen and it was awesome! They brought an energy to the stage that pulsated through the crowd and made audience members take notice.

If you've seen Ingrid Michaelson live before, you know that she's an incredible performer.  When she plays and sings it is obvious that she has something to say through her songs and you don't want to miss a minute of it.  Her voice can be light and airy hanging on to the softest notes and be charged and powerful in the next song, or event the next verse. She interacts with the audience and makes the concert even more fun, and makes each stop along her tour a unique experience for concert goers.  Last night, she brought up an audience member (selected from submitted videos) to sing "The Chain" with her and guitarist Allie Moss which was a fun experience not only for the guy who got to sing on stage with her, but for the whole audience.

Bottom line, if you have the chance to see Ingrid live on the A Summer Night Out Tour, don't miss the opportunity!

If you live in Raleigh and did miss this concert, there are still many more great shows coming to The Ritz this summer! Check out their event schedule for details!

Album Review: Lights Out - Ingrid Michaelson

Ingrid Michaelson has been flying under the radar for most of her career, finding her greatest success from her songs’ placement on various television shows and commercials, such as Grey’s Anatomy and One Tree Hill.  Her pen-ultimo album, Human Again, gained her greater exposure and success peaking at #5 on the Billboard 200 and #1 on U.S. iTunes charts.  Her new album, Lights Out, proves to be her best work yet. 

I cannot say enough amazing things about the album! Michaelson pours out her heart and soul breathing life into every track, every note.  She sings of loves lost, love found and life itself.  The album has a more pop sound than her previous albums with the pop-synth sound of “Handsome Hands”, and the more upbeat tacks such as “Girls Chase Boys” and “Afterlife”.  The album still has the simple, yet powerful, feel that is expected, and welcomed, from singer-songwriters.  It is composed of songs that require active listening in order to understand their true depth with a dash of songs that are just fun to sing along with.

Human Again was a great album in and of itself, but the inclusion of other artists on this album adds a layer of variety which aids in taking the album to a completely different level.  Adding another voice to a song provides the potential to explore two intertwining perspectives within one story which Michaelson is able to do well with Storyman and Mat Kearney, as well as the other artists on the album. 

The music on Lights Out is poetically simple and alive.  It combines a tracklist of varied sounds into a harmonious mix that plays seamlessly together.  If she keeps working to improve her craft and refine her sound I can’t imagine how amazing future albums will be. 

Buy the album and see her live when she comes to your town!

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