Rodrigo y Gabriela made two appearances in the San Francisco Bay Area this week. The first was at the rejuvenated Masonic Center and the second was almost 50 miles to the south. We attended the second evening - at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga.
The performance was exceptional, as expected. On the other hand, the lengthy but interesting discussions about the history of the duo came as a surprise. It isn’t uncommon for a band to provide a quick description about a particular song prior to launching into the track. At the Mountain Winery, Gabriela and Rodrigo each took a turn talking to the audience while the other one either left the stage or sat quietly and listened (quietly until Gabriela laughingly explained that Rodrigo likes to talk).
We found out that the two tried for success in Mexico, often playing at the beaches. After some frustration, they moved to Dublin, Ireland, and started as street performers on Grafton Street. The success did arrive and they now tour internationally with their combination of Metal, Flamenco and Rock.
Hey, Rodrigo sings; and he has a good voice. His solo cover of Radiohead’s "Creep" was well received. We didn't record "Creep," but below is a video we captured that is more representative of the style and skills of Rodrigo y Gabriela (sorry, no thumbnail appeared).
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Heather Maloney opened for Rodrigo y Gabriela. It isn’t an easy task for a solo performer to engage with an audience that is filtering in. But Heather Maloney accomplished the task. Her voice is simultaneously sweet and powerful. Embedded in this post are some pictures from the evening to Mountain Winery and a video from a visit she made to Audiotree in August 2014. Maloney is a songwriter, but the video is a cover of Joni Mitchell’s “Woodstock.” 
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