Rhye jazzes up the Ace of Spades

Earlier in February this year, Rhye released their newest album, Blood (2018), much to the anticipation of many who were awaiting their comeback after their debut album, Woman (2016). At the Ace of Spades in Sacramento, Rhye played a set that seemed to draw inspiration from everywhere on the sonic spectrum, from rock-and-roll to contemporary jazz. Accompanying Rhye was Your Smith, formerly known as Caroline Smith, the frontwoman of Minnesota-based folk band, Caroline Smith and The Good Night Sleeps.

Despite a temporary technical glitch at the onset of the show, Your Smith launched head-on and unperturbed into their set, backed by an impressive all-female band (a la HAIM). With the slightest Midwestern twang to the vocal harmonies in “Bad Habit” and clear references to neo-soul in “Half About Being a Woman,” (which is an honest, poignant litany of coming to terms with letting go) Your Smith seemed to evoke a certain timelessness and naivety on stage with her performance. Your Smith ventured further into R&B with a live rendition of “The Spot,” encouraging the crowd to sing along in the chorus. Coy and playful (but with a delicate charm), Your Smith was clearly a crowd favorite that night.

Following Your Smith, Rhye took to the stage and began their set with a soft-voiced rendition of “Song for You.” Rhye skillfully melded their artistry with their musical prowess – their meticulous attention to fine detail made their live performance even more enjoyable to listen to. Experimental, yet thoughtfully so, Rhye enlivened select tracks from both from Blood and Woman with spin-offs and the occasional instrumental ad-lib. They were enthusiastic about their music, and clearly reveled in it.

In “Last Dance,” Rhye plays with the contrast of airy vocals and equally sparse instrumentals in a groovy bass-driven track. Church organs, warbly synths, and the occasional interjection of a trumpet blare lent the song a jazzy tonality. The song easily stands out as one of the band’s best performances throughout the night, an epitome in the band’s skill in subtlety. “Open,” another of the band’s highlights, was an intimate, acoustic ballad that stood apart from the rest of the set.

In “Phoenix,” Rhye frontman Mike Milosh sings unequivocally about sexual desire, leaving little to the imagination. However, the distinct rock-and-roll improvisation towards the end of the track signaled the paradigm shift in Rhye’s live performances in comparison to their records, which sound much more muted and restrained. This change in momentum from their usual downtempo sound was sustained throughout the night. Unlike the soft, ambient sound most fans were accustomed to, Rhye dabbled in many different textures with the wide array of instruments and ad-libs they took onstage.

There was a caveat, however, to the artistic liberties that Rhye adapted throughout their performance. Their tendency to draw the instrumental encores out for too long left most of it sounding overdone and redundant. Although Rhye’s music does sound sensual, some songs tended to be like phonetic mimicries of each other, with the same alliterative phrasing and intelligible lyrics. Overall, this does little to take away from the remarkable talent they demonstrated as a group.