Another Tuesday, another OC Music Awards showcase. This past Tuesday was the 3rd Best Live Acoustic showcase hosted at the Gypsy Den in Santa Ana’s Downtown Artist District. If you’ve never been to the Gypsy Den before and you’re a fan of ma and pa coffe
e shops, you owe yourself to visit the Santa Ana establishment instead of the Costa Mesa one. The Gypsy Den is an independently owned coffee shop perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon, and at night, it becomes a dim and din venue for local bands and artists.
Micah Brown at the Gypsy Den
Micah Brown came on after Justin Soileau with his friend Jenna on electric violin. With blues, folk, and country influences, Micah Brown picks and strums with complete mastery of the guitar. And his voice is reminiscent of John Mayer: a strong voice that doesn’t overshadow the instrumentals. It’s no wonder why he received a standing ovation. Micah Brown is a helluva artist. And Jenna truly knows how to rock the fiddle. But on this past Tuesday, the Gypsy Den was unrecognizable. Usually with plenty of space and room, the venue was packed with barely any room to stand in. Even though fans of the individual artists would come and go, the venue was consistently full throughout the entire night.
Opening was Justin Soileau accompanied by his guitar. Heavily influenced by folk music with a hint of country twang, Justin played an amazing set as a solo act. With slight timbre in his voice, Justin sings like a deeper toned Ben Gibbard of Death Cab fame.
Parker Macy Blues played after Micah Brown. With a throaty, growly, and deep voice that seemingly shouldn’t belong to him, Parker really hits the blues demographics.
With hilarious lyrics based on apocryphal bible and personal love stories, he really struck a chord with the audience. And when he and his accompanying band used a strong forte note followed by a break in their song, it blew me away.
Following the Blues of Parker Macy, Danny Maika took the stage with his acoustic pop and blue-eyed soul set. Playing a variety of instruments and running them through loops, Danny Maika seemed like he was an entire band on his own. And his songs were all humorous anecdotes of heartbreak, romantic chases, and the Apple store.
Foxx and Da Hound
And last but not least, The Foxx & Da Hound finished off the night. The Gypsy Den had already started clearing out after Danny Maika, which is a depressing thought because The Foxx & Da Hound truly deserves some more attention. They’re best described as a folk acoustic band. Daniel’s voice is soft, but it melds in beautifully with the drawn mellow notes of Lizzi’s cello.
Odd thought: most of the artists played a song with strum patterns found in blue-eyed soul. Maybe that’s how they grouped them together? Anyways, it was a fantastic showcase put on by the Orange County Music Awards and the artists.
Next week, you can find the OC Music Awards for its final showcase night at the Slidebar. Then comes the showcase finals and awards night.
