Charlene Kaye… Intimately

Charlene Kaye is officially the first musician to make three appearances on Philthy’s homepage (and all in just over a year)… We obviously like her quite a bit.  Philthy...

Charlene Kaye is officially the first musician to make three appearances on Philthy’s homepage (and all in just over a year)… We obviously like her quite a bit.  Philthy first met the singer/songstress last July, when she was in the middle of a smashingly successful Kickstarter campaign to fund her latest album, Animal Love.  We later showed her some love earlier this year, when the album finally dropped.  And now we’re letting you know that you have the chance to catch a hyper-intimate performance from Charlene (and possibly the last chance to catch a hyper-intimate performance from Charlene) this Wednesday, September 26th, when she will be supporting Julian Velard at the ultra-cozy Tin Angel.

Ms. Kaye has spent the year promoting Animal Love, most notably appearing as-the-opening-act-for and a-member-of StarKid, the traveling musical theatre troupe founded by students of University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre & Dance.  The collective regularly features regular-Kaye-collaborator and Glee-mega-star Darren Criss and has gained quite a teenage fanbase, selling out a large string of mega-venues (including the TLA) earlier this summer.  Unlike lackadaisical adults, who prefer alcohol to artists that they haven’t heard of, youth audiences have historically shown a penchant for supporting “support” acts and Charlene seems to have turned herself into a legit heroine of sorts for teenage girls with a penchant for musical theatre.

This August Charlene Kaye put on a rare All-Ages performance at the North Star Bar that attracted Beatlemania levels of enthusiasm in the young girls in attendance (Some of whom got to the venue’s parking lot at 4 O’Clock in eager anticipation of their heroine.)  The venue wasn’t exactly packed, but those in attendance were swooning in dizzy admiration of Ms. Kaye and that night she appeared as a legit pop icon, taking the stage in white hot pants and a matching white, tasseled blazer, megaphone in-hand, like a Disney princess dressed as Elvis for Halloween.

The performance showcased Charlene’s latest album in the most glamorously glorious manner she is yet to experience in the City of Bortherly Love and Sisterly Affection, including the sass of 90s R&B in “Forever is a Long Time,” the timeless balladry of “A Million Years” (most closely resembling Chrissie Hynde at her most musically restrained, yet emotionally boundless), and “Woman Up,”  an anthemic tune that could have easily been produced by a soul sister or family band of the 1970s.  And the response was unhinged youthful adoration of the highest degree… and her career would seem to be headed in this direction.  So this Wednesday’s show at the 21+, dinner-theatre-“listening-room” configuration of the Tin Angel may be your last chance to see her in such an intimately low-key manner (It might also be the last chance to hear an abundance of “the slow songs”… although I haven’t consulted her about her plans for the setlist.)

 

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Music

During the day Izzy Cihak teaches transgression, subversion, and revolution at Temple University. At night he haunts Philthy's best venues to cover worthwhile acts for Philthy Mag. Morrissey is everything to him and, in their own heads, all of his friends see themselves as Zooey Deschanel.

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