Hot new music acts have a summer show together
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, August 14, 2019
Singer and songwriter Micaiah Sawyer and the Americana duo Robin Alice will play a concert at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at Vashon Center for the Arts.
In 2018, Sawyer was the first-ever female artist to win MoPoP’s prestigious Sound Off Competition, a premier 21-and-younger musicians’ showcase competition. Her sound, combining gritty blues and folksy soul, has garnered accolades and attention from influential Seattle music scenesters.
“If you want to see the future of folk music, look no further than Micaiah Sawyer,” said Adrienne Clark, of MoPop. Clark called Sawyer “the future of folk music,” and Martin Douglas wrote in KEXP’s Artist Spotlight that Sawyer has “the kind of voice that could make buildings crumble and weep.”
Kelley Jakie and Jeff Hortillosa make up the duo Robin Alice, blending pop melodies, rock-n-roll and virtuoso vocal performances.
Jakie will already be familiar to some islanders — she had a recurring role in the “Pitch Perfect” film series, appearing in all three movies. She and Hortillosa met during the filming of “Pitch Perfect 3” and have been performing together ever since.
“Our voices balanced each other out,” said Jakie, who’d earned a nickname on the Pitch Perfect set — “the professional” — for her acapella experience and vocal ability.
A Kentucky native, Hortillosa cut his teeth as a member of Whiskey Shivers, an unconventional bluegrass band more grounded in punk sensibilities than traditional twang.
This showcase of up-and-coming talent will open with Vashon’s own singer and songwriter, Maijah Sanson-Frey. Tickets, from $10 to $20, are on sale at vashoncenterforthearts.org.
