Photo by Brian Hockensmith

Alabama Shakes
Echo Beach
Toronto, ON
June 20

Unpretentious. Workmanlike. Relatable. The performance by Alabama Shakes at Toronto’s Echo Beach on Thursday, June 20 was all of the above. And yet, while front-woman Brittany Howard appears inconspicuous, on stage she becomes a presence that elevates the Shakes from hook-driven soul and blues-rock to cultural phenomenon.

In a crowd that was about three-quarters female, the empowerment vibes were hard to ignore. The emotional delivery of songs like the sultry “Boys & Girls” ( “Oh why did I let them drive a wedge between, well I watched it, and I didn’t say nothing, and now I’m crying when I sleep” ), was clearly a resonant experience for the female-centric audience. Cries of “She’s SO amazing!” were met with “I know – isn’t she just SO GREAT?!” throughout the crowd after every song. For what it’s worth, the men there heartily agreed.

Standing barefoot in the sand of Echo Beach (there is an actual sand pit in the middle of the crowd area, with shoe-check available for those who want to it between their toes) this show was the perfect way to kick off the official coming of summer. There was a warm, affirmative, lean-on-me kind of vibe, as befitting a beautiful evening on the banks of Lake Ontario.

From the slow-burning opener of “Rise to the Sun” – which perfectly set the stage for their epic duo of “Hang Loose” and “Hold On” (my personal favorite) – “Always Alright” and “I Found You” led into the album-sequenced “Heartbreaker,” “Boys & Girls” and “Be Mine.” Closing the set with the smashing, barreling-forward Heavy Chevy, Howard’s intro of “He asked me not to go so fast!” whipped the crowd into one last screaming frenzy that had her band mates racing to keep up.

While there’s no doubting the musicianship of the Shakes – guitarist Howard, bassist Zach Cockrell, drummer Steve Johnson, and second guitar Heath Fogg – the rest of the band seems to provide a canvas for Howard to work her magic. She is Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Mick Jagger and Ferris Bueller rolled into one, a dynamo in an understated sun dress playing guitar like you would if you were trying to impersonate the greats in a karaoke bar. Except she’s actually playing.

Howard acts like any fun-loving, confident, bar-rockin’ male guitar player would, one who is clearly having a blast playing music – but she does it with such swagger and natural showmanship that she can’t help but become a standard-bearer for women in rock.

Alabama Shakes take concepts everyone can relate to – love, self-worth, heartbreak, resentment, perseverance – and weave them into tunes few ears can ignore. Experiencing this show and feeling how the crowd connected with the simple yet relatable subject matter of Howard’s songs, as well as her crystal clear, soul-filled delivery, it’s clear that the Shakes have hit upon a winning combination.