Canadian Sass Jordan's rock echoes with sounds of the past
LEWISTON — Canadian songstress Sass Jordan capped off Artpark’s “Wednesday at the Gorge” summer concert series with a night of straight-ahead rock tunes that would be equally at home in a (preban) smoky, brick-walled club or venue perched high above the Niagara Gorge.
She and her four-piece band (including three long-haired ax wielders) took the stage just as the sunset’s cotton-candy rays spread across the sky, competing with the blue, pink and purple stage lights.
It was clear right from the start that Jordan channels the guttural vocals of Janis Joplin. Indeed, Jordan portrayed the late singer in an off-Broadway production. For a more contemporary comparison, take Melissa Etheridge’s voice, give it a harder, more gritty, edge and you’ve got Jordan’s soulful yearnings.
Many of her songs dealt with personal introspection, including “How Do I Get It Right?” — a song she said she wrote with guitarist Richie Kotzen of the ’80s hair-metal band Poison — which opened into a breezy chorus.
“Every Night I Sleep Alone” was a wrenching tale of love lost. And “What You Gonna Do” would sound good blasted at full volume on a car stereo while headed west on the Trans-Canada Highway.
Throughout her hour-plus set she swayed with the beat, clawed and punched the air and air-guitared from her spot, center stage. An excess of blues-based guitar solos marked the latter half of the set.
Jordan drew a decent turnout for a chilly night in Lewiston. As her smoky voice wafted over the Niagara Gorge, the pit in front of the stage grew more populous.
Jordan’s solo career goes back to the mid-’80s and is marked by ups and downs. Today she’s a judge on the popular TV show “Canadian Idol,” and she seems more confident and self-assured at this stage in her career. She has dropped the uncertainty of “I Want to Believe” from 1992’s “Racine.”
The Filter Kings ripped through an opening set of blues and rock tunes and clearly enjoyed their moment on a big stage — the lead singer was quite a chatterbox. Decked out in matching bowling shirts, the local group was earnest and energetic.
Jordan’s set of sensitive and heartfelt songs was a great curtain closer for Artpark’s free outdoor summer concert series.
Concert Review
Sass Jordan
Wednesday night as part of Wednesdays on the Gorge series at Artpark.
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