The beloved singer-songwriter Andy Shauf dropped by Birmingham, AL’s Saturn last week as a part of his Wilds world tour supporting his 2021 album of the same name. This date was notable because it had been on the calendar for over two years — when it was originally announced in the winter of 2019, singer-songwriter Faye Webster was supposed to open the show up. As you might recall, we saw her sell out this same room last month, which is evidence of how the world has changed since Shauf was due to come to Birmingham. The wait was well worth it; beginning his set with “The Neon Skyline” off of 2020’s remarkable album of the same name, the set was a breezy, uplifting journey through his acclaimed discography. Whereas at previous dates we’ve seen Shauf was mild-mannered and hardly spoke to the audience, he seemed to be in delighted spirits throughout the night as he reflected on his past times playing Birmingham and frequently drew the audience into his style of world-building lyricism that he’s been handcrafting since his debut. His backing band was skilled at bringing those worlds to life, with a heavy emphasis on the Rhodes organ and clarinet transporting listeners to the titular Skyline bar that Shauf’s characters frequent. Opening the show was Shauf’s ANTI- labelmate Yves Jarvis, who brought his unique style of acoustic songwriting to an awestruck crowd. It was one of the more impressive feats I’d seen, as it takes skill to silence a crowd of 200 people as an acoustic act; Yves Jarvis did this expertly, and with rumors of a record coming this spring, he’s one to definitely keep your eye on. Find our photos of the evening below:
Andy Shauf:
Yves Jarvis:
