The Black Lillies at The Fairfield Theatre

One of the best live shows you will ever see: The Black Lillies. This past Sunday they played the intimate Fairfield Theatre in Connecticut. The quintet, who have had quite the success on the Americana charts, blend country, folk, bluegrass, honky tonk and roots rock into a style that is both creative and uniquely their own.

With cheers from the crowd, many of whom were definite fans, The Black Lillies took the stage starting out with "Whiskey Angel." From there the music continued for almost two hours and included songs such as "Catherine," "Same Mistakes" and "Gold and Roses." The rollicking "Smokestack Lady" had the crowd on their feet not only dancing, but for a standing ovation (the first of many) as well, which had Trisha remarking how the crowd was more lively on a Sunday night than the previous night. In addition to their well known songs, they played a few new tunes including the spectacular "Mercy" and song that was a mash up of what they called (If I recall correctly) "Doc Watson meets Led Zeppelin." They also did a beautiful acoustic version of "Walking Through Your Town in the Snow" with each member taking a vocal turn and closed with "All This Living" before returning to raucous applause for the encore.

The Black Lillies musical style is authentic, diverse and rich with the quieter more reflective songs being as equally powerful as the honky tonk numbers that bring the crowd to their feet. The same can be said for the members; from Bowman's head bobbing and keeping the beat on percussion to Robert providing the rhythm on the bass to multi- instrumentalist Tom on pedal steel (among others), they play with an obvious talent, assuredness and ease. Vocalist Trisha (harmony and lead vocals, guitar, tambourine) and front man Cruz (piano, mandolin, guitar, vocals) hold everything together with a palpable joy for what they are doing. Individually, their vocals are warm, emotive and real, but when the two harmonize, it is simply beautiful. When The Black Lillies are in your town (or a town near you), do not hesitate to get go!

The Black Lillies are playing a special NYE show in Knoxville. For tickets and more information visit their official website.

In addition, they are working on their fourth album and have started a Pledge Music campaign with awesome perks. Check it out and Pledge!

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