For the bulk of the Indigo Girls concert Sunday night, at least one person in the audience was singing along, clapping or doing both. But there were moments of silence. When Amy Ray and Emily Saliers sang excerpts from their yet-to-be released album, audience members sat quietly and listened. But none of that quiet could top the amazed silence when the Indigo Girls were joined by Kathleen Edwards onstage to sing "A Song of Peace," acapella.
The three women sang the song so beautifully no one could move, let alone clap or sing along. But when the trio was done, the house erupted into applause.
The Indigo Girls played the Rialto Square Theatre Sunday night with Kathleen Edwards opening and joining them onstage for a couple songs as well.
It was a rescheduled concert from February, one that was canceled when one of the Indigo Girls lost her voice.
It was well worth the wait.
The first time I heard the Indigo Girls, it was through the speakers in my roomate's stereo at NIU. The harmonies, the lyrics, the messages; I was hooked. I listened to the songs over and over again, learning the words, singing along.
It was at NIU, too, that I first saw the pair in concert, when they toured with Ralph Nader when he ran for president the first time.
What is amazing to me about the pair is that they keep coming up with songs that touch a place in fan's lives over and over.
Of course, "Closer to Fine" was my first favorite, but then it grew, I loved "Galileo," "Watershed," "Pendulum Swingers." On Sunday, I might have found a new favorite, which I think was called "Fleet of Hope," which will be on the new album.
And I know I am not alone. When the Indigo Girls sang "Closer to Fine," they invited the audience members, who were already on their feet, to sing along. And they closed the show with "Galileo," and I don't think anyone was still sitting.
I was a little worried that being in a theater as large as the Rialto would take away from the intimacy of an Indigo Girls concert, but it was not about how large the facility was. The songs reach out and grab you and Amy Ray's and Emily Saliers' voices capture your heart. Suddenly, the venue doesn't matter, all that matters is the music, and it is big enough to fill a stadium.
So, were any of you there? What did you think?
Dawn Aulet is a woman, a writer, a wife and a mother. Often, the lens
through which she sees the world is colored by these roles, but not
always. Sometimes, her experiences have less to do with her roles and
more with the frustration of being a consumer, the need to put gas in
her car or the realization that the world does not have any obligation
to deliver what she expects.
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