I saw David Choi in concert last night at the Bootleg theater here in LA. He’s an interesting artist. By turns adorably awkward and just plain awkward, his personality seems at odds with what takes over as soon as he opens his mouth to sing. I’ve seen Ingrid Michaelson, BoA, Cary Brothers, The Weepies, Coldplay, and others in concert – and I was impressed by none of them as vocalists in the same way that David Choi blew me away. He owns that mic and that sound in a way I’ve rarely heard or seen, and delivers his mellifluous, Jason Mraz-esque tunes with the complete confidence usually seen only in much older, experienced performers.
I was also reminded what an exceptional lyricist he can be; his lyrics are simple yet incredibly poignant and deal directly with emotions we all feel yet cannot express. One of the strengths is that his songs present very specific situations; a guy seeing his ex-girlfriend on the street with another guy in “Won’t Event Start”; a guy hopelessly falling in love yet in denial in “That Girl”, and two friends who lost touch when one of them got a girlfriend and ditched his friends, in the new song “You Were a Friend” (or something of that sort).
Definitely an amazing experience – the acoustics were superb and the seats were comfortable and I simply can’t think of a better way to spend an evening than listening to that voice (so incredibly powerful and melodious and fluid!) with a very good friend at your side. Highlights were definitely “That Girl” (favorite song of his and I got chills hearing it live) and his cover of “Rocketeer.”
“I don’t wanna say she’s my kind/don’t wanna say that she’s mine”
