Ghalia Volt & Talia Keys LIVE at Shades on State

Ghalia Volt

Never underestimate the power of a woman with her back to the wall. In March 2020, as Covid blew across the planet, the shutters came down on live venues and recording studios, and the music scene fell suddenly silent, Ghalia Volt faced the same dilemma as every other artist. What now?

The answer was One Woman Band.

Having joined with the cream of the US roots scene for two acclaimed albums, 2017’s Let The Demons Out and 2019’s Mississppi Blend, Volt’s rebirth as a solo performer wasn’t a decision made lightly. But if an apprenticeship busking in her native Brussels taught Volt anything, it’s that she already had everything she needed to make magic. “In March, I started playing on a real drum set,” she recalls. “Playing a kick, snare and hi-hat plus a tambourine with my two feet, while playing slide/guitar and singing at the same time.”Lessons is the latest album from Talia Keys & the Love, and unveils the kaleidoscopic vision of a motivated, inspired artist. A born-leader and dynamic rocker who aims higher, digs deeper and circles the wagons to manifest the most ambitious work of her career. The guitar-shredding firebrand has fine-tuned her scintillating stew of high-octane blues and soulful R&B grooves, with the squad in tow to show and prove. Lessons finds Ms. Keys leaning into the intestinal strength and resilience inherent in her voice, with more clarity, consciousness, and swagger than ever. Coming out of the creative cocoon of the global pandemic, Keys steps into her power, sharing a selection of her strongest songs to date with a palpable urgency and a veteran band’s streamlined delivery.