Concert Review: Sarah Jarosz @ Sixth & I (2/1/24)

Sarah Jarosz (Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez)

‘Oh yeah, we’re doing it! This is fun!’ – Sarah Jarosz

Sarah Jarosz’s Polaroid Lovers Tour started at Sixth & I on February 1st, and based on the reaction from the sold out show, it will be an epic tour.

Sarah is an Americana/folk singer/songwriter and is touring for her seventh album, Polaroid Lovers (via Rounder Records).

After a fine, very fine introspective set by The Ballroom Thieves, Sarah and her backing band launched the set with the rocking “Jealous Moon”, the first of nine songs they performed from Polaroid Lovers. It speaks to leaving a relationship, possibly too soon and without the whole truth, and the regret becomes overwhelming.

Next came the earnest “When the Lights Go Out”, where the lyrics for the album’s title exist in the chorus, ‘In a dream, we were Polaroid Lovers, in the deep where the edges don’t lie’. It was during this song that I realized this was going to be a special show. It starts slow, with a memorable, wistful beat, then builds into an epic croon as the chorus is unleashed. Sarah’s voice soared through the vast domed interior of Sixth & I and circled the white pillars securing the balconies, before hitting everyone’s limbic system like a freight train. I don’t even care what the lyrics mean (although I will tell you), the delightful tones released so much dopamine, I hope my brain isn’t broken*. It’s about wondering who your new love is in different contexts, and as Sarah described about the making of the album, ‘I knew I wanted to write a song about the exciting time before a relationship has started when you’re curious to discover everything there is to know about the other person. Dreaming about them… intrigued by the unknown of it all.’

Sarah and her three backing band members performed 19 songs in total. Aside from guitar, bass and drums, one band member brought out an upright bass a few times, and when Sarah wasn’t playing the guitar, she gave the banjo a good plucking on a couple of songs. Originally from Texas, and currently based in Nashville, she released her first album, Song Up in Her Head, in 2009. For her stellar work on the first six albums prior to Polaroid Lovers, she has been nominated for 10 Grammys, and won four.

A few songs later, “Columbus & 89th” brought instant melancholy, and highlighted Sarah’s bright, clear voice, as the lyrics brought forth a tale of reminiscing about love while standing on a street corner.

According to Sarah, “Days Can Turn Around” is a hopeful song about a mother’s wisdom that envelops you like a warm blanket.

They did perform one cover (Massive Attack’s “Teardrop”), and aside from the nine songs from Polaroid Lovers, they mixed in one or two songs from all of Sarah’s previous albums, with the exception of Song Up in Her Head. At one point, Sarah addressed ‘the elephant in the room‘, in that one light in Sixth & I repeatedly went in and out, often at a key moment to fool us into thinking the illumination was part of the act. She assured us it was not.

Midway through the set, Sarah played “Jacqueline” solo, from 2016’s Undercurrent, giving the band a break. Which they may have needed to prepare for the dulcet yearning melodies of “Morning”. With the full band back, Sarah shared the story behind this song, in 2021’s Blue Heron Suite. Her mother was going through a rough time with a breast cancer diagnosis when many of the album’s songs were written. The title of the album is from fond memories of times with her mother when they would visit the coastline of Texas and see blue herons on the beach. “Morning” speaks directly to that experience. And the story had a happy ending, as her mother is currently cancer free.

They ended the main set with the upbeat, country-strong “Runaway Train”, that minces no words to the boy that has a heart like a runaway train.

When they returned for the two-song encore, they led with the classic folk sounds of “Ring Them Bells” (written by Bob Dylan), before ending with the final song of the set from Polaroid Lovers, the lush and relatable “Mezcal and Lime”. When someone intoxicates you on a summer night like mezcal and lime does, I’d say you’re winning at life.

All in attendance on February 1st won this round of life and music**, from the diehard fans (there were many that cheered for Sarah’s classic songs), to those new to Sarah’s oeuvre, there was something for everyone. Good music, new and old, to pluck our many moods and emotions.

I had meant to buy a copy of her album from the merch stand, but let the long line deter me. So, like me, you should now go buy a copy of Polaroid Lovers from your favorite music buying situation. And get a ticket next time she visits DC. She tends to come to DC every couple years, but let’s hope that changes.

Setlist