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On a warm August 4th the air was steeped in humidity. Evan Christian confidently took the stage first at Café Lulu, armed with an impressive conglomeration of funk, flamenco and pop. He sat with his left leg calmly crossed over his right and launched into a wordless flamenco workout with soul underpinnings. Midway through this tune Christian already had the audience’s attention. He then immediately segued into his cover of Willie Dixon via Howlin’ Wolf’s “Spoonful”. It was powerful and rhythmic and heads began nodding instinctively. Another highlight was a Spanish language song that showed off his deft ability to be simultaneously grimy and sophisticated. Then into his driving original song “The Money” which was propelled by his usage of the guitar as percussion. He then played a string of crowd pleasing covers including “Under the Bridge” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, “Redemption Song” from Robert Nesta Marley and “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel. He made all of these songs his own by draping them in his Ritchie Havens-esque emotive rasp. Christian then finished his set by having everyone in the crowd sing Prince’s “Purple Rain” with him, which everyone did gleefully. When Christian was done, the attention turned to three artists creating a spontaneous folk art painting. The addition of live art was a very nice touch for a night already flowing well.
