Social on the Seacoast: Two Great Shows at The Loft This Weekend

The last Live @ the Loft show I saw was the innovative cellist Ben Sollee, who completely mesmerized me with his genre-bending, infectious music. This Friday, I’ll be first in line to hear famed country blues guitarist Rory Block. I confess that the Delta blues weren’t really on my radar until a few months ago, when I learned that Rory was coming to the Loft. Shame on me—this woman is a master guitarist, and her gritty, forceful drawl reminds me of one of my favorites, Bonnie Raitt. (Trivia tidbit: both are the same age, born two days apart—Rory on November 6 and Bonnie on November 8).

Rory’s passion comes through in every song, and her live acts are legendary. Here’s what she says about performing: “I get massive amounts of energy from the audience, and no matter what mood I may be in, I always connect with them within a song or two and from there the sense of being among friends actually overtakes me and I open up.” She’ll be performing two shows at the Loft on Friday, at 7:30 pm and at 9 pm.

Then on Saturday night, the Loft welcomes folk roots duo Mike & Ruthy. The couple have been playing together for more than a decade, including gigs at Carnegie Hall and Madison Square Garden, enchanting audiences with fiddle, banjo, guitar, ukulele, and their hallmark harmony singing. This year, they’ve been garnering stellar reviews for their release THE NYC EP, a collection of six songs featuring the premiere recording of Woody Guthrie’s “My New York City.”

Mike & Ruthy have no idea who I am, but I’ve been following their career for many years. My late husband taught with Mike’s (very proud) dad at the University of New Hampshire. On several occasions, Joe would arrive home from work with the latest CD from Mike’s former band, The Mammals. I loved listening to the self-described “subversive, acoustic, stringband” sound of The Mammals—and I can’t wait to hear how Mike & Ruthy have evolved. See them at The Loft Saturday night at 8.