Say Hello to Matt Lowell

We talked a little smack, but we had so much fun at the Ryan Cabrera concert at Highline Ballroom Monday night.

Perhaps most exciting were Cabrera’s fantastic openers Dion Roy and Matt Lowell!

Lowell kind of sounded like if Dave Matthews fronted Kings of Leon – which we were totally into. (“thanks so much! I love both obviously,” Lowell Tweeted to us.)

The singer-songwriter’s First Taste EP soundtracked a few episodes of The Real World: Brooklyn last year, and his tour roster has included everyone from Sister Hazel to Marcy Playground to Tony Lucca.

“It feels weird being up here, I’m used to being down there,” Lowell told the larger venue of 400 people.

We’re surprised this kid isn’t used to playing huge gigs – at moments, he backed away from his mic and that voice could fill a stadium!!!

Check out Lowell’s cover of The Bee Gees‘ “To Love Somebody” (with Amber Rubarth), above.

Sister Hazel Storm New York

“Thank you for braving the elements tonight!” Sister Hazel frontman Ken Block told the audience at Irving Plaza. Block was talking to the hundreds of fans who stormed New York’s mini monsoon Saturday night to come see Sister Hazel play, along with fantastic openers Pat McGee, at the legendary NYC venue.

And SH rewarded their fans well: rocking tons of hits from their 15-year catalog, including “Happy,” “Champagne High,” and “Release,” off of their latest album of the same name.

“I love that you guys sing along, whether it’s a song you heard on the radio or track seven off disk four,” Block candidly told the crowd.

“All For You” certainly belongs in the former group, as it peaked at #11 on the Billboard 100 Chart back in 1997, and skyrocketed the band from obscurity to fame.

Check out a chunk of the performance below, brought to you by the kind folks at Poison Ivy!