Alsund @ The Shack
I’ve been listening to Alsund for the past couple of years. One day I stumbled upon The Shack, one of the newer venues on Second Life. I say newer but it’s been about three years now. Time has moved in a strange way during this pandemic. And it’s friendly venues like the Shack that caught my attention and kept me coming back. Shack proprietor Poppy Threebeards who in real life hails from the North West coast in Lancashire England is a lovely and welcoming host and her warmth gives the The Shack a family-like feel. Alsund who is also from the UK in RL hails from South Shields.
This beach venue has all the sun, sand and falling coconuts anyone could ask for, with plenty of comfortable beach loungers, tiki hut swings, and a big dance floor. Musically it is known for blues, country rock and pop and Alsund falls into many categories all on his own!
With his charming English Accent and his jolly nature, it’s just Al and his acoustic guitar as he draws the audience in and keeps the good times going! This evening he kicked off the show with a couple of originals. The first one was a song he wrote about The Shack, and in it he sings of dreamy beach days on hammocks with a good bottle of wine, the perfect song to start a Friday set at the Shack. The next original was “Sail Away With Me”. For a guy that comes from a part of the world with less than tropical weather he really has the hang of being beachy!
Next up was “You’re the one that I want” from Grease, “Bad Things” upon request, and “You are my Sunshine”. Al has a casual way of strumming through a song with a joke or story here and there. His casual humble style makes it feel more like friends around the campfire than an evening at a venue. Tonight, Alsund shared that He got his first guitar after begging his parents for one after seeing the Beatles on TV. His parents finally gave in and we are so glad they did! Though from the sounds of it Alsund was a little disappointed that for his first guitar he got a Spanish Acoustic, not at all like the cool bass he saw Paul McCartney play! He shared a little about his younger days in a band where they travelled far and wide to put on a show. I bet he never imagined he would one day be putting on a show for people around the world from his own living room!
From The Doors, “When You’re Strange, to a passionate version of “Dance me to the end of Love by Leonard Cohen, to “Dancin in the Dark” and “Cover” by Bruce Springsteen, followed by Don’t let me be misunderstood by The Animals, Katie Perry’s I Kissed A Girl and Dolly Parton’s “Jolene, and his finale of “How Long” by Ace, Alsund took us through a fun evening of quite a few genres of music and a good time was had by all!
