Concert Review: Jennifer Denali Will “Try” At The Bitter End
I one time heard someone say, “You don’t try hard…. you try better.” Then they died. I’m kidding on that last part, and I am sure that quote was not, exactly, original. “Do better!” and “It gets better!” are all quotes we have heard, at least once, and, for Jennifer Denali, at The Bitter End, “better” is something we eternally seek and redefine.
Whether it be the realization that someone you loved was not worth your loving or that a choice you made was not, exactly, the most loving to yourself, Denali’s setlist seemed to have a core theme: better is a spiritual ladder, of which each step you climb makes you see the one before was not, necessarily, good. Her voice and presence reminds of a Patsy Cline or Loretta Lynn; women that knew how to come off strong about feeling weak. They would wither their voice to sound like the quiet whimpers of every woman that has hid in the corner of a subway cart, bathroom stall, or the cusp of their bed to cover-up their tears. For Denali, her voice is their cries smoothed into the safety and control of her range. Unlike our tears, her voice can hit pitches and emotional purposes with clarity.
While it felt like a short set, Denali was like a seasoned vet; someone that knows who they want to be as a star and expresses and composes themselves as such. You may think that every artist that crosses the music scene knows who they are or want to be, but it can be far from it. Most of us are too focused on being a vision rather than becoming a visionary; aiming to be seen while not asking ourselves what we want in our “frame.” Hence, the magic of Denali as a singer and songwriter is that she writes for the women starting decide what is their “frame” or “better.” For More Information On Jennifer Denali Click Here.
