Hotel Cafe Hollywood, CA
Contact: Sarah Beth Watson, [email protected]
Web: sophiascottmusic.com
Players: Sophia Scott, vocals; Harry Foster, keys; Enzo Iannello, guitar; Dino Iannello, cajon, percussion
Material: With over 92 million streams and a million monthly Spotify listeners, rising country star Sophia Scott played a fantastic show in Los Angeles in advance of her debut full-length project slated for release this Fall. Kicking off with polished, feisty vocals for 2022’s “Don’t Tempt Me” the show opened with great country sound and lovely vocal turns. New single, “You Problem” delivered a sassy ballad with a great low-end vocal breakdown alongside gentle guitar and accompaniment on the cajon.
Musicianship: Backed by an incredible three-piece band that helped showcase her solid vocal projection, gentle octave leaps and pushed notes, and an intriguing storytelling style, Scott delivered effortless punchy lines in 2018’s ode to an ex, “She Ain’t Me” (which was written in Los Angeles). Continuing on to a fabulous belting a cappella bridge section on regretful track, “Lipstick On You,” she sings ‘It’s a shame that every shade of red can’t save you from the blues.’ Her beautiful reinterpretation of Aretha Franklin’s “You Make Me Feel (Like A Natural Woman)” held the room captive with Scott’s gentle inflections and syrupy delivery.
Performance: Deeply connected to her audience, Scott’s openness and transparency build quick rapport, and with vulnerable, honest storytelling. Deliciously bluesy-vibed millennial love song “Acid In Aspen” was fantastic, and spoke to a new generation of music lovers and referencing enumerable toxins (‘acid in Aspen, dope in Denver, codeine in Kansas,’ etc.) as parallels to the feeling of all-encompassing romantic love, while “Drink Too Much Wine” kept things grounded with gravel-edged accents, gorgeous raw soprano notes, and more flawless vocal turnarounds.
Summary: “Watering Roses” (another new track) spoke to the end of her engagement, with a poignant confession of tough choices and love lost and a lovely use of dynamics, while show closer, new single, “Boots, Jeans and Jesus,” had her crouching down between her cajon and guitar players for a tighter sound, sharing phenomenal accented high notes in this catchy new song with fun hooks and lyrics. Sophia Scott brings a beautiful, honest surrender to her feisty, heartfelt songs that combine gorgeous vocals with clever, poetic songwriting.
