Joshua Davis headlines April 15 concert at Leland’s Old Art Building
From staff reports
Tickets are still available for Leelanau County resident Joshua Davis’ concert on Saturday, April 15, at the Old Art Building in Leland. Doors open at 6:30, and the concert begins at 7 pm.
“There are so many reasons I love the Old Art Building besides the fact that it’s a quick drive for me,” Davis told the Glen Arbor Sun. “I love the history of the building. I love the community that supports it. I love that it embraces all mediums of art, and the sound (there) is killer. It’s one of those really special venues.”
Davis was raised in the traditional folk tradition: the music, the social movements, the land. Over the past 20 years, he has honed an impressive range of skills—songwriter, bandleader, guitarist, and vocalist among them—in the most honest possible fashion: night after night, song after song, show after show Davis simply delivered every performance as though his life depended on it. Investing himself in the American musical diaspora, he has explored the common thread connecting folk, blues, jazz, ragtime, and country forms—discovering his personal perspective as a composer in the process.
“My sound is rooted in the folk tradition,” Davis said. “But it’s not folk music. Terms like Americana, roots rock, and heartland rock come up, but there’s so much more to it than that. I’m not a purist: I play with that American folk lineage, I play with those metaphors.”
His versatility and ravenous musical curiosity has resulted in a divergent and fervent output. Davis’ authenticity plucks all of the right heartstrings, soars on the updrafts, and plumbs the depths of the human experience.
“I love playing solo shows. It allows me the freedom to dig deep into my songs and really be in the moment with the audience.”
Davis said the solo show will feature lots of songs and stories in this intimate venue.
Read our previous coverage of Joshua Davis, including his Thursday night concerts at home during the height of the COVID pandemic and his participation as a musical ambassador in the 2012 “Run Across Palestine.”
