On September 20, John Batdorf and Sarah Blacker kick off the Outpost season.
Outpost in the Burbs will be returning for their fall season beginning Friday, Sept. 20. This show will be held in Fletcher Hall at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Montclair, N.J. as part of the Outpost Café series for a more intimate setting, plus a B.Y.O.B. option. There is no better way to kick it off than that.
John Batdorf has a bit of a musical repertoire to claim. Batdorf has countless things to add to his resumé. In the 70’s, he had experience being one-half of the Batdorf and Rodney, until he grew to a staff songwriter and session jingle singer in the 1980’s for many commercials, television shows and films. Batdorf then began producing records for shows during the 1990’s.
John Batdorf shows that as a musician, there is no such thing as running out of room for projects. Lack of projects is not a necessary excuse if one keeps pushing, digging and trying their hands at any music project possible. Some of his popular solo songs include “Home Again” and “What D’Ya Got?” In these two tracks especially, he showcases lyrical and vocal content similar to Bon Jovi, except with a slightly more rustic feel.
With John Batdorf and Rodney, some tracks include “Can You See Him” and “One Day,” which showcase more influences of Genesis and James Taylor, respectively. Whatever influences seasoned listeners draw from his music and whatever new listeners will observe, all of Batdorf’s musical work conveys messages of hope, togetherness and turning ugly times into something beautiful. All of this is what Outpost is all about: creating a positive environment for everyone and keeping it that way.
Performing with Batdorf will be Boston-based indie folk singer/guitarist Sarah Blacker. She is not only a musician but also a certified music therapist who evenly splits between that and her own music. For those who are not familiar, some of her songs include “Sand Piper” and “Knocked the Winds.” Her music is great for those who like Tift Merritt, Leslie Feist and Sharon van Etten, but Blacker makes music that is pleasing and down-home enough to make everyone happy and sure to grow quickly on new listeners/fans.
Although she has released three albums thus far since 2009, Blacker is not yet signed to a label. Nevertheless, her music still earned her some awards and nominations, including winning Female Performer of the Year at the New England Music Awards in 2012 and a nominee for the Boston Music Awards as Singer/Songwriter of the Year.
It is only appropriate that the transition from summer into fall calls for more of these Outpost Café shows to come because fall/winter seems to be the time of year where togetherness is of highest importance, and an actual café is intended to evoke that atmosphere.
In order to keep these events going and to support the Outpost volunteers who work hard to do that and set them up, it is suggested that concertgoers make an online donation. Tickets can be purchased at Keil’s Pharmacy, Studio042 and online. Tickets are $21 in advance and $25 at the door.
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