I was at the Chicago airport, waiting for yet another delayed flight back to Nashville, when I met Mike from Vancouver at the bar, who was waiting for the same flight. We shared a similar love for music and quickly struck up a conversation discussing our favorite music discoveries of 2013, taking avid notes on cocktail napkins. And so I came to find out about Wild Belle. Needless to say, their debut album Isles quickly found its way into my heart and I was soon bragging about them to all my music-loving friends.
“What do they sound like?” my friends would ask. “Well, really hard to describe; it’s so different,” I would answer. Of course you could throw them into the indie pop bucket (who isn’t these days?), but their sound is truly unique, reflecting heavy reggae influences, folk, rock and jazz. Add to that the saxophone tunes played by Elliot Bergman and the incredible voice of Natalie Bergman that resembles something like Billie Holiday meets the Black Keys. You land on a sound that works across generations – from babies bouncing their little hands and feet in the car to senior citizens dancing their tush off at Mercy Lounge, when this brother-and-sister duo graced Nashville on May 7.
The band covered pretty much all the songs of the album Isles, including “Shine,” which they were about to take off the set list forever. “This one’s for all the lovers out there,” Natalie said. Furthermore, Nashville got to hear a couple of their new songs for the very first time, which Wild Belle is currently recording in Nashville. To round off the entire experience, the Wild Belle siblings looked like a picture straight out of the 60’s. Natalie embodied the essence of a hippie – from her flowy white blouse to the multiple Turquoise rings and the fringy suede guitar strap. And her brother Elliot was truly embracing the Jim Morrison look.
Nashville was the first show of their current small U.S. tour, which also includes some festivals. Wild Belle ended the set with giggles on stage. Natalie Bergman seemed so pleased that she even gave a big shout-out to Nashville, saying it was the best show of her life. If you get a chance to catch this gem of a band live anywhere: do yourself a favor and go!
