SHANTAIA

Saturday April 22, 2023

@ Temple Theatre in Portland, TN

(Review by: Jeffrey Kurtis)

Forty miles North of the flashing neon lights of downtown Nashville sits the quaint town of Portland, TN just a dew drop South of the Kentucky border.

Portland, as with anywhere right now, is experiencing growth spurts but in their efforts to keep their hometown feel intact, the revitalizing Main Street atmosphere is center-pieced by the incredible, 240-seat Temple Theatre.

The fully renovated, 1930’s era venue which hadn’t been in working condition for 67 years, now offers a perfect throwback setting that upholds the theatre’s original heyday, radiating from the glow of its classic marquee sign, the detail of the calculated trim work, the classic film posters hanging in the lobby, and a high level of distinguishable class wrapped within the aura of its charm and character.

The hometown flavor reached the inside of the venue as everyone, from the staff to the patrons, seemingly knew one another as could be overheard in their sharing of pleasantries while snacking on concession stand goodies in the lobby prior to the doors officially opening.

On what was dubbed as “Canadian Artist Night,” special guest Mark Gallant enticed the very receptive crowd with songs that impacted his life from the likes of Jim Croce, Steve Miller Band, Marvin Gaye, Glen Campbell, and more, before headlining act Shantaia hit the stage for a rousing full-band performance that ignited the audience with her energy fueled backbeats, while also strategically hushing them to expertly pull them into each word during her emotionally driven, lyrical masterpieces.

Having recently released her album Exes and Friends, the Canadian songstress who now calls Nashville home, has already impressively garnered over 2 million Spotify streams on the back of hot single releases, “Broke to Brand New,” “Had A Good Weekend,” “Hung Over You,” and her most recent release, “Know You,” while also earning several SCMA award nominations this year.

Opening with “Hung Over You” instantly showered the crowd with her crisp, modern country sound as she pushed her incredible vocals into the chorus, elevating at all the right moments to make the impact of the breakdown near the end of the song punch that much stronger into the final lines as a tremendous ovation rained down on her during the final notes. 

After strapping on her acoustic guitar and telling that the next song was the one that really started everything for her, she and her band grooved into the feel-good, summery beat of “Had A Good Weekend” as her voice floated atop the sway along rhythm while toes tapped across the audience on the cement flooring as heads bobbed and shoulders danced in time with the melody while Shantaia enthusiastically popped her hips during the ultra-catchy chorus.

Praising the breathtaking theatre and gratefully thanking their staff and the receptive audience for welcoming her, she had the crowd immediately singing along with her during her first cover of the night, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Have You Ever Seen The Rain?” injecting the familiarity of the male fronted song with a distinctively different flavor through a female vocal interpretation that offered a unique depth and made the song her own.

“I’m from a tiny town of about a thousand people called Spiritwood that’s up in the far North part of Saskatchewan, Canada,” Shantaia shared as she invited us into a snapshot of the small-town way of life through “Damaged Goods,” driving right back into the insatiable catchiness of her of her original material as she metaphorically opened her high school yearbook to take us straight to her hometown through the stories of the people in it, who might all damaged in their own ways, but are all good when it comes down to the heart of it.

“Seeing as though it’s Canadian artist night,” she teased as the opening notes of Shania Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like A Woman” energized the crowd as the band added a grit to the chop of the guitars and a pounding backbeat into the drums to sprinkle the familiar tune with its own flare while the crowd sang along as she mashed into “Any Man of Mine” and “Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?” aptly keeping everyone moving as she bounced around the stage with a big smile on her face.

Sliding away from the typical Miranda Lambert covers of “Gunpowder & Lead” and “Kerosene” that so many acts do in their sets, Shantaia instead embodied her cowgirl spirit through “If I Were A Cowboy,” which she fused into The Chicks “Cowboy Take Me Away,” each selection allowing the depth of her deeper tones to intrigue the crowd.

Bringing us back to her early beginnings, “Two Cents” leaned against a moody driven country style that contained traces of what has now become her signature sound, giving the audience a very cool opportunity to see a piece of the puzzle from where she once was to where she’s at today, giving a full journey look at the growth spurt of her as a songwriter and artist.

“I’m gonna flash it back to another Canadian; this time from a different genre,” she exclaimed as she wrapped her amazing vocal range into Alanis Morissette’s “Ironic,” driving through the mid-90’s alternative rock staple, striking the big chorus by rocketing her vocals over the building rhythm, and then effortlessly hushing back into the softness of the verses.

“Know You,” her current single at Canadian country radio, slowed the pace as she wrapped the proper emotions into her vocal to deliver the heart tug of the chorus, pouring through a list of every little thing she knows about her ex – from his go to cologne to what station is on his radio – before lamenting that the only thing she doesn’t know anymore…is him!

Keeping in the softer paced range, “Best Yet” continued tugging hearts in quite the same way as “Know You” had, when she injected her voice with the heartbreak emotion of seeing her ex so happy with his new girl, and then having to face the tough realization that she herself wasn’t his “best yet.”

“Alright…You have to sing along. No exceptions! Every single person in here is gonna know it,” she exclaimed as the opening lick of Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues” lit up the place as the crowd clapped along with 1, 2 beat wrapped into the rhythm as they mouthed the words to iconic song, while the walking shreds of the dueling guitar licks inserted into the breakdowns allowed each respective instrumentalist the momentary chance to shine in the spotlight. 

“When I was writing this record, I realized that I was missing a nostalgic piece to it,” confessed Shantaia as she pushed back into the groove heavy sway of her signature style on “Curfew,” opening up the Polaroid photo album of her youth as she took us through coming of age stories from when life was wide open in front of her and her friends, and they still lived in each moment with a carefree attitude back when they were the kings and queens of the small-town circle.

After excusing the band to a great ovation - less her keyboardist – Shantaia then turned the theatre into a true listening room experience with a 4-song acoustic set that started with the title track of her album, “Exes and Friends,” brokenheartedly singing us through the natural see-saw of emotions that arrive in the aftermath of a break-up as everything is changing while you look back on what could have been but wasn’t.

“This is how it all starts when I’m writing a song; just me and a guitar,” she explained as she continued to keep the listening room spirit alive over the quiet of the crowd with a brand new song, “Dream Home,” which saw her sharing her story of chasing after her musical dreams and the heartfelt thoughts of making everyone proud of her back home, as she encouragingly wove how important it is to embrace all the little steps of achievements that keep you going.

Maren Morris’ “My Church” ended with a rousing clap along into its final chorus, while Joplin’s “Me & Bobby McGee” was masterfully reimagined into a purely folk feel, giving the song an interesting twist as she moved her vocals from her lower register to high, impressing the crowd as she rounded out acoustic set while the band rejoined her during the final notes.

After highlighting two members of her band who have been out on the road with Lainey Wilson’s opening acts Ben Chapman and Meg McRee, she then nailed a spot-on version of Wilson’s recent #1 song “Heart Like A Truck” to a deafening ovation.

Clearly entering a truly fun zone on stage as each member of the band was all smiles, their infectious energy resonated with the crowd as they drove through a great blend of country and rock hits that had everyone singing and dancing along, which included snippets of Lady A’s “Champagne Night,” Joplin’s “Piece of My Heart,” Jo dee Messina’s “Heads Carolina, Tails California,” Pet Benatar’s “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” and John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads.”

“Thank you so much for having me here tonight…this has been an incredible night,” humbly said Shantaia as the crowd showered her with a great ovation when she slid into her final song of the night, “Broke to Brand New,” ending her set with the power punch song that changed her life last year when it landed her in the Top 40 for the first time and set in motion the success she’s experiencing now!

FULL SET LIST

1) Hung Over You

2) Had A Good Weekend

3) Have You Ever Seen The Rain? (Creedence Clearwater Revival cover)

4) Damaged Goods

5) Shania Twain mashup

6) If I Were A Cowboy/Cowboy Take Me Away (Miranda Lambert/The Chicks cover)

7) Two Cents

8) Ironic (Alanis Morissette cover)

9) Know You

10) Best Yet

11) Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash cover)

12) Curfew

13) Exes and Friends

14) Dream Home

15) My Church (Maren Morris cover)

16) Me & Bobby McGee (Janis Joplin cover)

17) Heart Like A Truck (Lainey Wilson cover)

18) Country/Rock medley

19) Broke To Brand New

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