Crystal Shawanda – 20/05/2016 – Hugh’s Room, Toronto

She’s a force of nature, Crystal Shawanda, and she seemed to be in her natural habitat on the stage of Toronto’s “Hugh’s Room” belting out – with a tasteful nuance – the blues. The Canadian singer may reside in Nashville, but her casting as a country artist, whitewashed as the genre demands, is hopefully over. “Love me when my roots are showing” was one of the taglines on Crystal’s 2008 debut, and now these roots have finally tied her firmly to the music Shawanda is most comfortable with; that’s why, on the night, she didn’t delve into her first two albums opting instead for the latest one as a springboard for choice perennials and previously unheard compositions.

May 27, 2016