Josh Rouse took the stage at the Henry Fonda to an expectant crowd. He started of his set with “Quiet Town” and his female fans in the front clamored and jockeyed for the closest spot that could be squeezed into. Camera phones in hand, they eagerly shot away at Rouse, who in a T-shirt, blazer and jeans looked like someone you’d approvingly take home to mom. To me, Rouse most closely resembles a young and more polished Charlie Sheen, which helps to explain the conglomerate of ladies in the front of the stage.
Rouse was backed at times by a string section consisting of three violins and a cello, other times by a bassist and drummer, or sometimes just playing solo on his acoustic guitar. Rouse playing along with the string section was my favorite band incarnation. They gave a warm and inviting quality to his songs. Unfortunately, Rouse had some problems with his sound, much of which appeared to be in his own head, since it sounded fine out in the audience. He complained of feedback on a few occasions and stopped in the middle of songs to remedy it saying “it’s annoying.” Regrettably, this made his set somewhat disconnected and made Rouse appear less than professional. To his defense, he did cite battling a cold that evening, which may have accounted for the odd feedback in his ears. About taking Sudafed he joked, “see what drugs do to you?”
When Rouse announced that he was going to play “Michigan” a small crowd cheered and he said “those in the front know it” because not a lot of people do. Rouse had some truly die-hard fans there to see him and the rest of the crowd seemed genuinely entertained throughout the entire set.
