BILL MALLONEE AND MURIAH ROSE
EDDIE’S ATTIC DECATUR, GA
8-13-2008
This was the third time this year that I have seen Bill and Muriah play, and they never disappoint. I am a huge fan of Bill’s music, and I actually believe that his music has improved since he disbanded the Vigilantes of Love. Not that the music has just improved, but the output has tripled and definitely grown lyrically and well as musically. Bill is one of those guys that could play for fifteen minutes to two people, and he would play as though it was a two hour set to a packed house. His heart is in the music and his music is on his sleeve. His wife, Muriah Rose, accompanies Bill with piano and vocals and it wouldn’t surprise me if Muriah came out with her own album at some point, she backs Bill up beautifully. My favorite song of the evening was “Nothing Like A Train”, that song just gets to me every time that I hear it. Bill is the heart and soul of a folk singer, and for me, it doesn’t get much better than this!
This show was Bill opening, but due to the headliner being late, Bill played for a solid hour. The bonus here was that Dave Claussen, who played on Bill’s solo albums Dear Life and Friendly Fire, came up and played fiddle with Bill and Muriah for three songs. When the three of them started jamming it sounded almost bluegrass, it was amazing. The venue was great as well, Eddie’s Attic is a local favorite here in Decatur, GA and has great acoustics and good food. The concert was surprisingly fresh and full of energy considering that they had just come off of a seven week tour across the entire country. Bill will be playing at the same place again this week, and I’ll be there for sure, but another note worthy thing here is that the Vigilantes of Love are back and will be performing next month (November) in Athens, GA. If you haven’t seen Bill play live, you need to go. You can purchase all of his albums digitally through www.billmallonee.net, as well as a brand new E.P. that just released last week.
– Steve Ruff
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