Declan McKenna is a
19-year-old English singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist, making his debut appearance at the Iron Horse in Northampton on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
It’s one of those promising situations where a celebrated UK star-on-the-rise comes to these shores with something to prove. McKenna won the Glastonbury Festival’s Emerging Talent Competition in 2015, released a slew of singles and his celebrated debut album, “What Do You Think About the Car,” last year, and then won the BBC Music Award for BBC Introducing Artist of the Year a few months ago.
Musically, he’s mentioned ABBA and David Bowie as influences, and he loves writing a song with a “banging, grand chorus” as he told an interviewer last year — “Humongous” has one of my favorites, the melody twirling down deftly and irresistibly over major and minor chords.
At times, McKenna’s musical blending of the intimate and huge reminds me of the great Norwegian singer-songwriter Sondre Lerche, though McKenna works to combine the personal and political in his catchy pop songwriting. He’s covered such topics as religion (“Bethlehem”), the media’s representation of LGBT communities (“Paracetamol”), and the stark juxtaposition of poverty and corporate wealth around the Brazil World Cup (“Brazil”), even writing a “post-truth era love anthem and anti love song to the political elite” (“Make Me Your Queen”).
“I want to be someone who is able to speak out against these sort of wrongdoings in the world and not worry too much about overstepping the line in terms of what I talk about in songs,” McKenna said.
At press time, advance tickets were sold out, but additional tickets will be available at the door on a first-come, first-serve basis. Be an early bird! The opening act is young singer/songwriter Chappell Roan.
Bunnies (Northampton), Landowner (Holyoke) and Footings (guitar/viola/drums indie-rock trio from Peterborough, New Hampshire) play the latest Lowdown night at The Basement in Northampton on Saturday at 8 p.m. on the button.
The debut of the All Babes Society concert series features a quintuple-bill of Emily Woodland, Sedona LeBlanc (pictured), Emma June, Lady Jane and Little Busy at the Ashfield Lake House in Ashfield on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. The series will spotlight solo queer/ woman/non-binary-identified musicians from the Pioneer Valley. “Our intention is to create a intergenerational stage that supports musicians in all stages of their careers and strives to build a listening-oriented audience,” say series producers Sedona LeBlanc, Ashfield Lake House, and Nest Productions, adding that their definition of “babe” is “Radical, righteous humans looking for an outlet to share their artistry. YOU ARE WELCOME HERE.”
Prints, Stefan Christensen and Mike Barrett perform an in-store show at Mystery Train Records in Amherst on Sunday at 6 p.m. Free, but tips for the bands are appreciated.
Singer/songwriter and Sugar Hill recording artist Liz Longley plays the Iron Horse on Sunday at 7 p.m. Kerri Powers opens.
Singer/songwriter Kimaya Diggs, trained in opera and jazz, is also a writer, teacher and performer, working in TV, podcasts and more. Her new album, “Breastfed,” arrives in March, and she performs at Gateway City Arts in Holyoke on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Xylouris White (left) is the duo of Cretan lute player George Xylouris and Australian drummer Jim White, at the Root Cellar in Greenfield on Thursday at 8 p.m. Their third album, “Mother,” came out last month. The twosome headlines a bill that also features Matt Krefting and Scratch Ticket. Scott Seward from John Doe Jr. Records will spin vinyl between bands.