Sunset Over Hope Street.

Last month, I had the opportunity to catch an intimate studio performance (thanks to Lisa at Sneak Attack) with Ari Hest. The candlelight and acoustics of Downtown Studios made the space warm and inviting and combined with Ari Hest's crazy beautiful, soulful talent; it made for a uniquely magical experience, one I most certainly will not forget.

Ari Hest has a voice of the past... A beautiful, slow growl that's just (for lack of a better way to say it) so pretty, it churns your insides and makes you melt at the first breath. If Sarah Maclachlan and Johnny Cash had a baby and then that baby had a baby with Bruce Springsteen, I'm pretttttty sure that baby would sound (and quite possibly look) like Ari Hest.



Ari switched off between the piano and the guitar and brought the audience into a whole 'nother world with every new song he played. Seated on a stool with his guitar perched in his lap, Ari sang "A Good Look Around" and held the entire room captive in his gaze. He's intense yet bashful, and it totally works. Paired with the ridiculously great (those adjectives don't even cover it) percussionist, Doug Yowell; Ari showed us his playful, vulnerable and even political sides performing songs new and old (but mostly from his newest album "Sunset Over Hope Street").

If you haven't heard of Ari Hest yet, you're missing out on some delicious musical goodness. Check out his website, he'll fully win you over. Purchase "Sunset Over Hope Street" here...

Become smitten. ♥