Sat May 10
Davina and The Vagabonds
7PM / $25 - $50 | $3.50 Fees Get Tickets
Davina and The Vagabonds
“Davina Sowers creates her own Americana mishmash – a little Amy Winehouse-worthy neo-soul here, a little Great American Songbook-influenced songcraft there.” - Rolling Stone Magazine
“They dare to be different. Davina zips to near impossible heights in a divine declaration of romance” - DownBeat Magazine
Etta James meets Amy Winehouse meets Billie Holiday describes the passionate vocals from bandleader Davina Sowers. Getting swept away, Davina and The Vagabonds combine blues and jazz, American songbook era pop, and a sprinkling of tender ballads that recreate the sounds of bawdy New Orleans circa 1930’s and ‘40s for a powerful, unforgettable performance.
Much like the music, the story spurns era, expectation, and classification. The often unbelievable, sometimes harrowing, and wholly inspiring journey of Davina Sowers gave birth to her eponymous band Davina and The Vagabonds in 2004. As the tale goes, she grew up in economically depressed Allegheny town of Altoona, PA, which she now describes as “awesome in the industrial era, but horrible for high school.” She was adopted by her much-older stepfather when he was in his 80s; he passed when she was just 13. Through him and his Edison phonograph, she first heard The Ink spots, Sydney Bechet, Louis Armstrong and Louis Prima, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and many others. “Great man. He was my angel and still is,” she says.
Davina and The Vagabonds shine every time they play. To date, they’ve performed in 45 states, 12 European countries, and two Canadian provinces. Not to mention, they’ve earned feverish acclaim from the Chicago Tribune, NPR, and more in addition to performing on BBC’s international favorite late-night program Later… With Jools Holland and appearing on PBS’s Bluegrass Underground. The group’s full-length debut, Black Cloud, arrived in 2011 and cemented them as hometown heroes in Minneapolis. 2014’s Sunshine bowed in the Top 15 of Billboard’s Top Blues Album chart. During 2016, they unveiled their live album, Nicollet and Tenth, to the fervent embrace of fans. In between, they play nearly 200 gigs annually, including gracing the stages of festivals such as Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
7PM / $25 - $50 | $3.50 Fees Get Tickets