4 Stars
Music enthusiasts often say the best live music is underground. At The Cave on Sunday night, located a level below Franklin Street -- they were right.
The Cabarrus Street All-Stars are part of a new, young music movement that's a little bit rock, a little bit blues and a lot of fun. With the energy and sound of young bluesmen Kenny Wayne Shepard and Jonny Lang, the seven-piece, Raleigh-based band put on a terrific live show.
But the band's high-energy performance didn't quite fit the purring set that the audience members expected. Frontman and guitarist Gilbert Neal's attempts to engage the meager crowd were continually thwarted by the unresponsive attendees.
It just wasn't the audience to fit the All-Stars' dynamics and performance style. The band was gutsy on stage -- one of the band members even wore an N.C. State University shirt for the Chapel Hill show. Performing confidently and playing arduously, a few of the All-Stars' songs were reminiscent of the harder side of grassroots rocker Ben Harper -- breaking from cruising instrumentals to pleasing funk.
But the Cabarrus Street All-Stars were not all-out rock and blues. Mellow jazz lines crept into the ensemble to create some beautiful contrast, courtesy of saxophonist Mitch Morton.
