Portland’s Outer Orbit Concert
Before funk group Outer Orbit releases their new album, and before my interview with singer Sarah Clarke airs on Ragtag Magazine, I want to reflect on my first concert experience with them.
It was poetic that the first concert that the COVID pandemic cancelled was connected to the first concert I saw a year later. As my vaccinations kicked in and social restrictions were lifted, I was most eager to see music. I hadn’t gotten over the cancellation of a Dirty Revival and Galactic concert, scheduled late March 2020. I’d see Dirty Revival thrice in concert before this time, in large part due to Sarah Clarke’s vocal performance. She is a magnificent stage presence. So when I found out she was singing with a band called Outer Orbit in early June 2021, I knew I had to see it.
I drove from Portland to the venue in Hood River, Oregon. The Ruins is situated behind an old railroad facility, but turns into an oasis by the time you find the destination. The concrete walls surrounding the stage reflected the sound wonderfully. I noticed it when I first walked into the tune of “Mean to Me”, an jazz/blues standard that Billie Holiday once covered.
The performer was the opener in Megan Alder. She was armed with her voice, a guitar, and a sound pedal. She would loop her guitar melody midway through songs to play a solo. Her folk blues sound was very calming, but with a positive energy. She usually has a backup band, but was rolling solo this day. Like any good opener, she ended her set by hyping us up for the opener band in Outer Orbit.
They have a jazzy funk groove, which they started out the show with. Galen Clark’s keys leads a melody alongside Peter Knudsen’s guitar. Tyrone Hendrix on drums and Damian Erskine on bass anchor down a tight rhythm section. The technical proficiency by the rhythm section lets the melodies fly off the stage. We can tell during this intro that each member of the band is comfortable and gifted with their instrument. They’ve played in previous bands before, gaining experience from people such as Prince and Ghost Note before jumping on this stage.
Sarah Clarke isn’t yet on stage, opting to let the band perform for themselves before she comes up to sing. When she was with Dirty Revival, the same thing happened, in letting them get a groove on before she puts lyrics to it. Outer Orbit’s groove was bluesy, performed by players who loved jazz fusion. Clarke’s stage presence will mesh with this beautifully.
Once they switch to the next beat, Sarah comes on stage with admiration for the band. She leads an applause for the band, before setting herself up to sing the lyrics of Kissing My Love, an old Bill Wither’s tune.
Much of their set comes from their forthcoming album. A few of their singles have been released right now, all of which showed up on stage that night. I was waiting the whole night for Neena, my favorite of their songs they’ve released. The crowd was energetic, almost euphoric to experience music like this once more. Everyone was dancing. The concrete floor in front of the stage was packed with couples swing dancing. They had a bunch of covers they played for us as well, including a rendition of Crazy by Gnarls Barkley, and the aforementioned Kissing My Love. I’ve always enjoyed hearing how Sarah and her bands arrange familiar songs.
I left the venue with an Orbit Orbit shirt on my back and an electric smile on my face. With a new band to fall in love with, who wouldn’t. Now that I’m vaccinated, I want to experience live music and meet music fans. This was the case with the band when I talked to them, as well as everyone in the crowd that I talked to. Music has been harshly impacted by the pandemic, as you have likely noticed. An art form that thrives on connection and communication has had to scramble to be active. As Oregon, and the rest of America, gets vaccinated and cleans up, we can hopefully see music touch our lives once again.
