Lindi Ortega

The James Blunt concert last month was a great experience. Apart from dispelling all rumors about a supposedly "dull" performance, it gave me a fantastic opportunity to witness the talent of a wonderful young artist called Lindi Ortega.

Ortega opened the show, accompanied by a pianist while she played guitar. A shy, quirky young performer turned into an artist to be reckoned with right before my eyes. Don't be fooled by her slim silhouette, that girl has a powerhouse voice! Simply enigmatic for the lack of any other word. Her musical inspiration is drawn from country and folk music, and you can tell that she's learned her lessons well. Rock-meets-country-meets-blues is the best way to describe her sound. Her lyrics are deceptively simple but you can see the thoughts behind them run deep and beyond.

She sang a few songs that had the crowd riveted. I have to admit I haven't heard her before but I was blown away. She is fabulous! Her website calls her "Toronto's best-kept secret." It's true!!! I'll try not to gush too much but her voice is magical as are her lyrics. I particularly liked a track called "Dying of Another Broken Heart" which is a track that sounds like a country track, if it were to be categorized. There's another great song (my favorite I have to add!) called "Black Fly" which has great lyrics that belie her age. Both these songs are on her 2008 EP which has been released recently.

Apart from being a great vocalist, she came off as someone who can have a good laugh, including times when it's self-directed. Throughout her brief performance, she enjoyed in banter with the crowd and encouraged people to buy her CD, very humbly requesting them that she'd be around in the foyer later in case they want to say hello! I hope that her humility stays intact after she hits big time internationally (which I'm sure she will!) It's remarkable that she got a standing ovation at the end of a track and had the crowd clapping and cheering all the way through. It's not many young artists who can boast of such appreciation. Whoever picked Ortega to open for James Blunt did a smart job at picking out an artist who can get the crowd going, ready for the main act. Although at times, I almost forgot that Blunt was to follow!

After much digging around, I realized this "young" artist that I keep referring to isn't that young musically! Her website has snapshots of her previous work and now my mission will be to track the albums down and have a good listen. Do LISTEN UP! to Lindi Ortega.

Comments

[amreen]

Sounds like a great concert, Savia! It's great to discover amazing local talent - sounds like she'd be fun to see in a small venue like the Horseshoe or Lee's Palace - somewhere intimate.