Angelica Garcia – World Café Live – Philadelphia, PA – December 8, 2016 (A PopEntertainment.com Conc

Updated: Jun 29, 2022

Angelica Garcia – World Café Live – Philadelphia, PA – December 8, 2016

Angelica Garcia and her band rocked the stage at the World Cafe Live in Philly. Including Corey Axt on keys and guitar and Andrew Sisk on the drums, they were to prime the crowd for Goodnight Texas and the headlining Bombadil.

The setting before the concert would have made you think you arrived at the wrong venue. World Cafe Live, west of Center City Philadelphia, is host to a wide variety of events. On this particular night it was an informational discussion on E. Coli from a local university professor. As the bands arrived and the discussion came to an end, the audience seemed to be completely replaced by one ready for music. The kitchen and the World Cafe Live also was put back to work as the talk of E. Coli left the air.

During sound check, Angelica seemed unsure and even unhappy at times. Apparently there were some electrical issues that would take some time to fix and produced some ear crushing squeals of feedback. While working through the sound check, Angelica and Corey would riff together sometimes for up to a minute or so, drawing early reactions from the audience, somethings usually not seen during a normal sound check. Nonetheless, all the feedback was fixed and they left the stage to prime the moment of taking the stage as a band.

As soon as Angelica took the mic, her timidity was all forgotten. She looked most comfortable under the lights and eyes of everyone watching. They opened with “The Devil Can Get In” off their new album. The set list was mix of the three band members, so after the first two opening songs, Andrew Sisk the drummer would come off the stage for a Angelica and Corey Axt duet. Axt left his keys for this one and picked up an electric guitar and would share a microphone with Garcia.

After the two took their bows, Axt would also leave the stage for a solo by Garcia, maybe the most memorable moment of the show. She used a vocoder and voice relay board to create a beat using only her voice. Starting with hums and moans to make repeating guitar and drum sounds, and singing over that with her soulful harmonic voice. After building the beat she would sing the first few words and it was clear: “Morning Bell” by Radiohead. Except the harmonization of her own voice layered and synced was nearly hypnotic.

In between songs, Garcia showed her charisma and sense of humor talking about things like her experience with tinder. Corey and Andrew would join Angelica back on the stage for the remaining songs, including their most popular song “Orange Flower,” which they performed nicely, breaking it down and giving each band member a moment for their own solo. It came together very nicely.

As soon as they finished, they packed and were heading out the door. However, I did get the opportunity to meet and hangout with the band as they loaded up their bus back to Virginia. Sisk, the drummer, is more of the quiet one. Axt a serious character, something straight from a Johnny Depp movie, his outfit matching his wild personality. Garcia, after leaving the stage, was back to her quiet, quaint self.

The three are obviously good friends back home, so the dynamic of the band is awesome on and off stage. There’s something special about this group and although it IS translated through the music, it transcends into something deeper. These soulful kids from Virginia have a sound and feeling that’s bubbling beneath the surface waiting to explode into the mainstream.

Nick Bergmann