Live Music Review: Andy Shauf at Mohawk on Valentine’s Day

On Valentine’s Day, Canadian singer-songwriter and musical auteur Andy Shauf played Austin’s Mohawk, delivering his unique brand of folk to the Red River District.  The soft-spoken lyricist wowed a sold-out venue during an ease-inducing performance that infatuated a legion of folk music fans.

Avoiding the common fret and rage, Shauf approaches modern tensions with a light-hearted and gentle tone.  His humility borders on timidity, this is evident upon his stage entrance. Slouching over his guitar, donning a hoodie and baseball cap, Shauf wasted no time with small-talk interactions with show goers, jumping immediately into “Neon Skyline,” the easily-recognizable lead track from his most recent album release of the same name. Thus setting a mellow, soft-spoken tone for the evening, led with euphonious vocals and instrumentation of subtle strings and drums.

                      

Shauf’s unmistakable soft delivery, drumming, light guitar strumming and subdued vocals  established a peaceful, calming atmosphere that continued with “Where Are You Judy.” That song was followed by “Clove Cigarette,” “Things I Do,” and “Thirteen Hours,” The gifted songwriter serenaded the enchanted and fully engaged Mohawk audience with these tunes. 

Shauf performed an even mix of his older and more recent material throughout the performance. “Living Room” and “ Fire Truck” each prompted a big reaction from the gallery of listeners. 

Before ending the evening, Shauf performed a more-mellowing rendition of clarinet and subtle guitar-led “The Magician,” the lead number from his 2016 LP, The Party. 

After taking his longest pause of the night (during which he received flowers from a fan) Shauf chatted with the crowd for a few minutes about what would be his final number of the evening, a solo-acoustic performance of “Jeremy’s Wedding.”

The evening shifted subtly in tone throughout the set with progressively more emphasis projected from the singer as he moved towards the finale. The instrumentation grew louder and softer, faster and slower, in minute fashion, maintaining a consistent laid-back vibe while adding textural contrast to the songs performed.  It often felt that each of the 18 songs morphed into the next, were it not for the very short pauses in between.  Each track played a part of what felt like a larger, unified concept. That’s an impressive feat considering he wasn’t playing one of his albums straight through. Instead, he carefully curated his set list in a cohesive fashion.

Shauf is one of a growing number of artists who play all of the instruments on studio recordings, indicating his musical versatility.  His latest album, Neon Skyline, was released last month and is a remarkable piece of work even without his instrumental contribution to the record. His live performances are equally as impressive. That one-two punch of mastering both studio sessions and live performances is the mark of an artist who has a long, successful career ahead.

Setlist

Neon Skyline

Where Are You Judy

Clove Cigarette

Things I Do

Thirteen Hours

Living Room

Dust Kids

The Moon 

Try Again

Fire Truck

Changer

Quite Like You

Twist Your Ankle

Alexander All Alone

To You

The Worst In You

Early To The Party

The Magician

Andy Shauf feature image courtesy of Margin Walker Presents