Jessica Lea Mayfield played for a crowd of mesmerized fans at Mercy Lounge on September 12. Songs filled with sadness, her sulky face and a seemingly distant and shy personality were offset by her colorful appearance consisting of pink hair, a sparkly top, bright blue eye-shadow matching her blue stockings, long fake eye-lashes and her gold sparkly Dr. Martens boots. Even her guitar glistened in pink glitter.
The entire tone of her performance reminded of heroin-chic days when music like Portishead filled longing hearts with a sense of comfort. The audience remained mostly quiet, swaying from side to side, as they took in this touching set. Even an older gentleman up front appeared to be moved to tears at times, clearly connecting with the songs and maybe discovering his own story reflected in the brilliant songwriting of this talented young woman.
Writing her own songs since age eleven, it comes at no surprise that Jessica Lea Mayfield has found the support of musicians like Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys over the years. However, her most recent album Make My Head Sing was produced without his influence and reminds more of grunge-rock compared to her earlier acoustic recordings. On stage, Mayfield exudes a sort of mysterious darkness masked in child-like innocence, which make her one of the more intriguing artists I’ve watched this past summer.
