Local guitarist enchants audience

Willie Karashin/Senior Photographer ACOUSTIC ALCHEMY: Musician Michael Kelsey performed a unique blend of music at the Clubhouse Bar & Grill on Friday night.

Jeff Lowe
Staff Writer

The audience was clearly psyched as the guitarist took control of the cardoned off area guised as a stage as audience members danced at his feet.

Michael Kelsey performed for an audience of approximately 125 people Friday night at the Clubhouse Bar & Grill, 827 N. 6th Street, Lafayette. The local guitarist drew a connection to the audience and seemed to engage them in his musical journey of sound. From the moment he took the stage, all eyes were on him and women began dancing to his beat.

Kelsey's performance was like watching a guitar magician; he created a melody with his guitar that many would long to create even after months of practice.

Kelsey was joined onstage by longtime collaborator Tevi Tarler, who sang soulful songs such as "Culture Personality." Tarler's wiry body danced around the stage as they performed; he seemed barely able to contain himself. Perhaps the best tune the duo performed was an eclectic medley of Led Zeppelin songs fused together into an extended rhapsody that clearly demonstrated Kelsey's skills with the guitar. This received a lively reaction from the crowd as some began singing along.

Although Kelsey performed a lot of previously recorded songs, it was when he began performing his own songs that his musical talent really shined through.

On tunes such as "So Complicated" from his new album, Kelsey was able to take traditional guitar rhythms and expand them into something entirely new.

Kelsey created a rhapsody of sound that could be described as the atmospheric sounds from a psychedelic dream sequence in a '60s B sci-fi movie. It clearly left many in the audience impressed.

It is because of his sound that Kelsey has gained a following in Lafayette and at Purdue.

Each time he performs a song it assumes a new incarnation than the previous one. As Kelsey continues to develop his sound and style, he hopefully will be able to maintain his energetic and esoteric style on the stage.

 

Purdue Exponent 2002