Bringing the Delta Soul to PSU

In the center of Mississippi lies Kosciusko, a city rich in American tradition and steeped with soulful musicians and entertainers. Nicknamed the “Beehive of the Hills” and home to the historical Natchez Trace, the city is an integral region of the south. 70 miles from Jackson and 130 from New Orleans, it’s a small city that has had its share of talent and promise, most-notably heralding the likes of Oprah Winfrey. From the shadow of such an enormous pop-icon, a soulful voice singing the delights of love and the blues of love-lost is quickly shimmering its way to notability. Such a voice is from a white, acoustic-guitar playing, good ole boy named Dave Barnes. The music this twenty-five year old Mississippian creates is soothing, funky, filled with emotion, and quite simply put, naturally flowing and engaging. His blonde hair and handsome look seem to be the topping on the cake, considering his invariably smooth and touching voice, well-crafted acoustic skills, and tenderly expressive lyrics. Barnes’ demeanor has been described as “old-timey,” polite, and genuine, three characteristics that lend much value to an up-and-coming performance artist who relies heavily on his touring and personable attitude. Whether or not Barnes breaks into the “big time,” his music is sentimental and wonderfully put together. Each song carries honest qualities of soul, rock, blues, and funk, which Barnes mixes expertly. After success from his debut acoustic EP entitled, 3 then 4, the young Barnes hit the studio with his producer and friend Ed Cash and emerged with his new album, Brother, Bring the Sun. This time around he collaborated with a full band, and their presence has been a near-perfect match. Their individual backgrounds are all deeply rooted in the great Southern tradition of soul, r & b, funk and rock. After listening to his sophomore effort Brother, I was foolish to prematurely emasculate the singer-songwriter. For though the cover of the album is unwaveringly sappy, with Barnes looking remarkably pretty and serious as though we were having a first-to-blink-dies staring contest, my criticism of the album design is now void of merit, considering the raw talent that Dave Barnes so charismatically exudes. The cover design was quite obviously created for his female fan-base, and truth to vision, I’m sure it’ll be successful. With success and riches in the near future, the style and talent of Barnes is hard to dismiss. As if I’ve already heard his cool and radiant voice before, such soulful and melodic singing has to be destined for regular air-play. Pondering over similarities, I’ve been hard-pressed to find one, if any. Sheryl Crow comes to mind for her mixture of pop and southern feel, John Mayer for his fluid guitar-play and voice, and believe it or not, Earth, Wind and Fire for their gospel oriented funk and cool, bluesy rock. Still though, these comparisons are only to add praise to the bright, shooting star that Barnes is quickly becoming. With a multitude of college and university campuses on his touring agenda, Dave Barnes is making his way to PSU to play a free in the HUB Fireplace Lounge, on Monday, February 28 at 8 p.m. Don’t miss the chance to view a talented Southern musician in classic form.