Brett Dennen looks alarmingly young despite wardrobe choices that reference Jimi Hendrix — loose-fitting button-up shirt and a mid-forehead bandana. When I first saw him at the back of the crowd at Space, I questioned if he was old enough to be at the 18+ show. It wasn't until the shockingly red-haired, androgynous youth got on stage that I realized the young buck in question was indeed Dennen himself. Space's sold-out crowd waited patiently last Friday post local opener, Pete Kilpatrick, who busted out a brand new tune for the hungry crowd. Having heard Dennen's CD only once, I had no expectations. I was told that his live performance was no match to his recorded material. I was also told he had been known to hush the crowd when they became too noisy — a trait I think is terrible in a performer. From the moment he got on stage until his second encore he and his backing band were professional and fairly seamless, probably learning from the larger acts, such as John Mayer, they've toured with.
Dennen's own material is pleasant to the ear (though I wish people would leave Bob Marley's covers to his kids; he has enough of them to cover his whole catalog). Dennen's music is something I would buy for my father-in-law with no fear that he would be offended by any of it. It's accessible and easy to swallow — unlike the hushing of the crowd he indeed did during his acoustic encore. Well, it was more like a pause and an intent stare that got the attentive portion of the audience to do his hushing for him.
You can catch Pete Kilpatrick six times in the next week. Check //myspace.com/petekilpatrick for show details.
Topics:
New England Music News
, Bob Marley, Brett Dennen, Jimi Hendrix, More 
, Bob Marley, Brett Dennen, Jimi Hendrix, John Mayer, Pete Kilpatrick, Less 
