(reprinted by permission from KC Cassi’s website)
It has been close to a year since I have seen Red Velvet Crush at the Songwriter’s Scene but October 25th I was finally able to catch them with a full band. The pop rock group is steady making a name for themselves in Kansas City and have even begun touring in places like Texas to help expand their audience. Move like these is one of the reason they were placed on the 2013 KC Cassi Honors bill, along with other driven performers. After hearing the album, ‘Girls Rock Too’ was definitely my favorite track and now was the opportunity to see it, and the other songs, live.
Dressed up as a Cat in my Halloween gear RVC took the stage and, of course, opened their set with ‘Girls Rock Too’. They came out strong and Jillian, as always, demanded your attention. Her fierce stage presence is hard to match, which is why I think I felt a little lack from the rest of the band. Daniel (guitarist) definitely was used to performing with Jillian as found a way to compliment her well on her side. However, the other members of the band were almost just serving as background music.
By the second song ‘You didn’t lose” there was definitely a little more energy on stage from everyone and I was really digging the keyboards in this jam. I loved the mix of the vocals with the bull horn and by this song I could tell Jillian, like most lead singers, had what I call an “overuse move”. Laura from SOLUS reaches her hand in the air, Joe from GREEN MUSIC BROTHERS double grabs the mic during more intense notes and Jillian flails her arms about. It isn’t too distracting which is good but it’s a good thing to get into what you are singing to the audience. The upbeat rock groove of this song was very catchy and really had people getting into it in the crowd.
‘Contents Under Pressure’ was the third song on the live set and was a nice little slow change up. You still had the powerhouse vocals with a bit on haunting emotion behind it, which I really liked. However, I was really waiting for the drummer to really band it out and do some fills here. That may just be personal but I think with a song like that you really can add a little extra flair to put on a show without taking a way from the song too much.
Thanks to RVC for the shout out to KC Cassi after this song too!
‘Monster’ was the final song of the set and RVC actually just released the music video for this jam Monday October 21! (Really loved the video too, you can check it out here)The mesh of a hauntingly, slow beginning that then runs into a hard rock really is a crowd pleasure. I think after seeing this song live is easily became my favorite song by RVC. The powerful and catchy chorus allows the listener to really get into not only the song, but the lyrics, Jillian expresses herself with her eyes when she sings. It really allows her to draw people into the music and her big voice.
If you are looking for a rock pop sound with a unique style then definitely check out Red Velvet Crush. Hailing from Kansas City but my prediction is they will be tackling much bigger cities in their future. They will always have the support of Kansas City and KC Cassi. 4/5 Stars from me!
Red Velvet Crush is:
Jillian Riscoe
Daniel Mandala
Links:
Band Website
Facebook
Twitter
Reverbnation
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