Sunday, Oct. 10, Chance McKinney & Cross Wire appeared at Seattle’s most coveted nightspot, The Triple Door. It’s a bit unusual for The Triple Door to invite a country band inside its posh doors, not to mention on a Sunday night. Yet McKinney’s fans proved taking a chance on the self-described “Industrialized Country” band was a good risk, and furthermore, his fans will come out any day of the week.
Women of all ages made up two thirds of the audience who came to hear what they helped create and what McKinney is most noted for. “Be Real” was voted into the No. 1 slot for an unsigned country artist in a national contest sponsored by Country Music TV. Music City Madness 2009 proved to be a perfect vehicle for McKinney to engage his fans and take them along for the ride.
At about six foot two, McKinney is one tall drink of water. Add the requisite cowboy boots and hat, a shirt half-tucked into a buckled pair of western jeans and you’ve got a machine women go crazy over. It doesn’t hurt that McKinney dazzles his audience with a bright smile, and frequent personal comments about who he knows in the audience.
Who he knows in the audience is his most powerful tool. Between songs, many of which are covers, McKinney talks with and to his audience giving them perks from the stage money can’t buy. To say the guy has charisma is an understatement. That combined with a stage presence that’s a cross somewhere between Tom Jones and George Strait and he’s a force to be reckoned with.
Talking with many of the women who came to the show, there is one bit of advice they’d like to pass along. “Be Real” resonated far and wide due to the genuine quality of the lyrics with McKinney delivering it in his natural register. Many of the songs he performs aren’t within his vocal range making it difficult to hear what he’s singing. If there’s one single thing about country music that’s important, it’s the storytelling aspect fans can readily relate to and that’s what they want to hear.
Even still, McKinney fans are true blue and will stand by their man. He’ll attract a much larger audience on his own merit when the songwriting is his own, complemented by a vocal range that suits him perfectly. Until then, it’s a safe bet Chance McKinney has a very bright future in music. He gives his audience more than their money’s worth in entertainment value and that’s a statement he can take to the bank.
Photos via http://chancemckinney.com Bottom photo via Jeff Harris.