If you mix folk music with an intimate comical stage presence –  you get Sarah McQuaid. She is an artist who enjoys her work and has been influenced by amazing artists like Nick Drake, Carly Simon and James Taylor. New to Acapela Studio but already expressing how she would “love to come back”, her folk music suits the venue’s unique setting.

Sarah McQuaid has been a solo artist since 2007 but has been performing since the 1990s. She has performed to 25,000 people at the Philadelphia Folk Festival, and is one of the most unique and interesting artists I have seen. Sarah McQuaid has been described by the Huffington Post as having “subtle mastery on stage” and which has indeed made this one of my very favourite shows.

Sarah’s performance makes the audience part of the show. She uses audience participation, jokes, storytelling through song and speech, audience recommendations of songs and of stays around at the end to meet her fans.

Sarah sings songs based on her life experiences. Beautiful songs, such as “Slowing Down”, “Too Many Plates”, “Silver Lining” and “The Last Song”, follow her family, journeys and most prominently – nature.

Sarah is a one woman band as she performs using a combination of both acoustic and electric guitars, keyboard and drum which accompanies her vocals. She uses sound effects to emphasise her stories through her songs, but she also uses the audience. She encourages the audience to sing along including improvising animal noises to fit the songs.

All in all, Sarah McQuaid is a unique artist, both rememberable and fun.

 

MEGAN BROWN