Layla Zoe – Into the Blue – Live in Concert
Layla Zoe Music
11 Tracks – 74 minutes
Layla started singing professionally at age 15 with her father’s band in Vancouver, Canada. Her interests and vocal performances were based in her father’s record collection and deep love of the blues. After singing in local bars and coffee houses, Layla studied jazz vocals for a year at Malaspina College in Nanaimo, British Columbia. She released her first EP, You Will, in 2005 and immediately followed that with her first full album, Shades of Blue in 2006. She started performing in Europe and quickly found an audience for her music there, prompting her to move to Germany in 2013. In 2016 she made her first tour of America and won the Best Vocalist at that year’s European Blues Awards.
Layla continues her world tours playing at some of the world’s largest festivals and stages. In March 2024, she appeared on stage at the Harmonie in Bonn, Germany, a stage well-known for its Rockpalast concert series. The concert she performed was recorded live and with the issue of this album, the concert is presented both as CD and as a Blu-Ray disk so listeners can see the dynamics of her performance as well as listening to her vocals. Vocalist Layla Zoe is joined by Krissy Matthews on guitar, Josh Rigal on bass and backing vocals, and Felix Dehmel on drums.
The concert is divided into two parts, the opening segments kicks off with a traditional gospel song followed by six original compositions from Layla’s previous recordings. The next five songs are cover songs from artists she felt had inspired her in her youth. Layla’s vocals have frequently been compared to Janis Joplin. Her range and depth improved as she has matured and gained experience over the years in her travel as quickly demonstrated by her a cappella presentation of “Oh Lord, I Want You to Help Me”. Her band then kicks in with on three songs from her 2018 album, Gemini, starting with a seven and half minute version of “Turn This into Gold” as she sings “sometimes I feel so alone” and announces that “I’m going to take this bad feeling and turn it into gold”. A six-minute version of “Automatic Gun” is next with a jump into a strong blues rock number noting “We are the weak, we are the prey, Lord show us the way”. “Can this insanity ever be forgiven?” Next up is a nine and half minute “Are You Still Alive Inside?” starting with a slow, haunting guitar and Zoe declaring “my body is frozen, and I make every excuse in my head. Won’t somebody help me?”
She next moves to the song “Jasmine” from her 2022 album, The World Could Change, a story about a woman who “does not care at all, she will never fall.” The first segment concludes with an eight-minute “Might Need to Fly” from her 2020 album, Nowhere Left to Go. She announces, “I Love my prayers, and I have so many, and I love the blues and dancing too, and I love to read, and I love to walk, and I love to eat good food and talk with you”. “I’m not fooling myself; I know something is wrong.”
She moves into her covers segment first with a twelve-minute version of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs”. The ultimate anti-war song that opens with “Generals Gathered in their masses / Just like witches at black masses / Evil minds that plot destruction / Sorcerer of death’s construction”. and concludes with “Day of Judgement, God is calling / On their knees, the war pigs crawling / begging mercy for their sins / Satan laughing, spreads his wings.”
The second cover is based on her memory of sitting with her father listening to a bootleg copy of Litte Feat’s “Willin'”, written by Lowell George. She dedicates the song to the truck drivers of Canada who are sitting in prison because of their involvement in the 2022 Freedom Convoy. Janis Joplin’s “Move Over”, who she cites was an incredible influence, leaves no doubt of the similarities to Janis’ voice. Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young” gets an almost ten-minute presentation. The folk song “Freight Train” written by Elizabeth Cotton concludes the album. She says that it was the first song she can remember her father playing for her on his guitar.
Layla ‘s voice is strong and flies, when necessary, but also can be soft and soulful on some of the quieter tracks. Krissy Matthews guitar work is excellent exploding in some of the more driving songs and cruising softly on an acoustic guitar on songs like “Willin'” and “Freight Train”. Josh Rigal and Felix Dehmel also provide great rhythmic backing on every song.
