During the warmer months of the school year, MTSU SPARE hosts a weekly Sunset Showcase featuring student performing artists in an intimate setting. Performers usually play to an outdoor crowd on the Student Union Commons, with the occasional indoor show due to inclement weather.
Kyelen Arora Trio blows away a storm-sheltering crowd
The Kyelen Arora Trio warmed up a damp crowd April 2 as students and faculty took shelter from the rain just inside the Student Union.
Pink and orange lights flanked the stage after a crew quickly moved the setup inside only hours before the show. Severe weather warnings didn’t deter Arora or the onlookers milling about the Student Union.
Taking the stage in cargo pants and a green button down, Arora immediately made himself heard with his classic blues guitar meets alt-rock sound. Bass player Luke Foote and drummer Hayden Lynch rounded out the trio.
Arora appropriately advertised the showcase as a “no set jam,” with the band choosing songs as their moods led them throughout the night.
Arora packed the set with long solos and funky bass lines as more and more onlookers approached the stage. The once calm crowd bobbed and nodded as everyone loosened up. Arora wedged an original song, “Parasite,” into a number of covers including Stevie Ray Vaugn’s “Voodoo Child,” throwing in solos for Foote and Lynch to showcase their talent.
“That one’s called ‘Parasite.’ It was written by me and my sister, who is right there,” Arora said. She waved from the side of the room.
Playfully teasing with the “Jeopardy!” theme between long, open jams, Arora slowed down to introduce his most recent release, “Who Are You,” bringing the crowd to their feet to dance and move more freely around the provided space. He held the crowd in a trance for “Can’t Fly,” another original, before switching guitars to finish out his set.
Ryleigh Taye’s soft voice cools off fans
Ryleigh Taye, lead singer of the band Haym, opened her April 9 set with an acoustic cover of “Birds of a Feather” by Billie Eilish.
“Can I cuss?” Taye asked, before singing “And you’re so full of s—,” laughing excitedly between the lines of the well-known song.
Taye then introduced “Dear Joel,” an original song co-written with her roommate from the perspective of the character Clementine from the film “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”
String lights flickered above Taye as the sky darkened over the commons. She tore into Paramore’s “Ain’t it Fun,” lit by the sunset and surrounding street lamps. Her red hair glowed like a halo as her soprano voice and gentle guitar took over the space.
“This feels like an open mic night y’all,” Taye said. “Sorry for cussing. I feel like I’m not supposed to do that, but I did a bunch of times.”
After describing recent mental health struggles, Taye exchanged a smile for cheers from her front row full of friends.
The small crowd gave the show an intimate feeling as Taye squealed and bantered back and forth with the group of onlookers. At one fan’s request, she played Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black.”
She continued into another original, “Jealous Girl,” full of engaging ad-libs met with laughter from the lawn.
The crowd watched intently and continued to shout requests as the air chilled. Taye displayed her range as her voice met the audience at almost a whisper for a cover of “Brooklyn Baby,” and then quickly moved from her gentle tone into belting for a second Billie Eilish cover, “The Greatest.”
The final Sunset Showcase of the semester takes place Wednesday, April 16 with Cade Ortego & The Mood Swings.
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