Original image of Jake Blount by There Stands the Glass.
God willing, the actual purpose of my enormous time investment and, alas, personal health sacrifice at last week’s Folk Alliance International Conference will soon materialize. Until then, I’ll share a blind item.
Jake Blount’s official showcase was packed. I fruitlessly inquired about empty seats as I shuffled from the back of the room toward the stage. I wound up sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with fans who claimed spots on the floor up front. Discomfort was rendered irrelevant by Blount’s brilliance.
Blount opened his enthralling set with a lament about the Middle Passage delivered over a grim drone. I soon became aware of discontented harrumphing from a man seated immediately behind me who apparently didn’t care for Blount’s unconventional approach.
The protest wasn’t out of place. I was almost certainly among a small minority at the conference who wanted to hear sonic disruption. I turned to identify the malcontent at the conclusion of Blount’s set. I was amazed and delighted to discover the dissenter was an octogenarian folk legend.
For the record, here’s a ranked listing of the artists responsible for my ten favorite performances at the conference: Jake Blount, Verónica Valerio, Sara Curruchich, Jennifer Knapp, Kris Drever, Kitty Macfarlane, OKCello, Barnaby Bright, Harry Manx and Talibah Safiya.