Photo by Tyler Nelson
Umbrellas were a must-have for the performance on Sunday night.
Sunday night could have been a lovely cap to a beautiful week and weekend, but the good weather ran out and the cold rain came for Pokey LaFarge on the grand lawn at The Baker House in Lake Geneva. The concert was put on by Safety Harbor Art and Music Center, an organization out of Florida which has been curating pop-up art and music shows.
The self-proclaimed “wholesome Midwestern boy” who hails from Bloomington, Illinois, spent the last three and a half months in Chicago, where he released an album and wrote at least one more. LaFarge preached to the choir of about 30 people in attendance with “Central Time,” a song lamenting the Midwest, without having anything against the East or West Coast.
LaFarge pointed out to the crowd that he’s a mix between an old man and a child, there’s really no in-between. A unique artist for the time, he seems like he was taken right out of a movie. In fact, you can catch him acting in the new Netflix film, The Devil All the Time, starring Robert Pattinson and Tom Holland.
LaFarge sang a few songs about drinking and told the crowd, “I never said all drinking songs were fun,” after a booze-infused ballad about lost love.
After the show, LaFarge stuck around to greet the audience and chat for a while. I asked him when he thought things were going to get back to normal for concerts.
Photo by Tyler Nelson
“No idea,” said Lafarge. “Big festivals are not happening next summer, I can almost guarantee.”
This was LaFarge’s fourth show since March and he stressed how thankful he was to be able to play solo.
“Arena shows aren’t gonna happen, if any club shows happen, it’s gonna be limited capacity,” said LaFarge. “It’s gonna make it really hard for bands to go out with their crew and be able to pay the whole band. I’m just grateful to god that I can play solo, you know, some people don’t feel comfortable or they can’t, and some people are more sidemen, what do they do? I’m a lucky guy.”
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As far as things returning to normal for him, LaFarge said he wishes he could blow smoke and give an answer, but like so many things going on now, it’s impossible to tell.
One thing’s for sure, you might be able to see more of these intimate outdoor shows with some pretty big names while larger events are on hold.
