KARACHI: It was a special evening. Those who were at the National Academy of Performing Arts’ (Napa) Zia Mohyeddin theatre on Wednesday evening had a whale of a time. Why? Answer: American folk/pop band Raining Jane was there to perform at the Women’s Performing Arts Festival.

They performed beautifully, winning the hearts of those who were not familiar with their work as well as of those who knew what the band is all about.

For the uninitiated, Raining Jane is an all-female band from Los Angeles. Being together for 25 years, they have the following members: Mai Bloomfield (vocals, guitar, cello), Becky Gebhardt (bass, sitar), Chaska Potter (vocals, guitar) and Mona Tavakoli (cajon).

The band was busy with their sound-check routine when, because of the warm weather outside, the audience was mercifully allowed into the auditorium before the four musicians could give preparations the final touch. So after a while when they were formally introduced by the US Consul General, Conrad Tribble, it took some more time for Chaska Potter to get things right. But during this period, Mona Tavakoli entertained the audience with her witty commentary and interesting way of introducing her band members. For example, on the longevity (25 years) of their togetherness, she remarked most marriages don’t last that long. It elicited laughter from the audience. And when she started playing the cajon, everyone took notice — she is an awesome percussionist, a force of nature.

All-female group performs during women’s arts festival at Napa

She also talked about the origin of the cajon and how enslaved people in South America used drawers to make musical sounds out of them.

The band began the show with a song about love. It nicely set the tone for the evening. They followed it up with You might like it from their album Mystical, Magical, Rhythmical, Radical Ride. The vocal harmony and the musicianship on the number were top-notch. Then Mai Bloomfield took the microphone and mentioned the state of Wyoming which seamlessly segued into their song Wyoming Sky.

Next up was the thoughtfully written and composed track Oh song that carried the message: ‘when you take a chance, let it fall away’. A tiny jugalbandi between Becky on the sitar and Mona (cajon) kicked off the latter half of the gig. The two played a short piece, a befitting demonstration of their noteworthy skill and talent. The wonderful exhibition of versatility did not end there as Raining Jane presented the number Browntown. It had a lovely reggae beat to it which the audience found easy to sway to. By this time, the group had developed a heart-warming bond with the attendees (which also reflected in Mai’s emotional little speech about the love they have received in Pakistan) and presented a number titled From me to you.

The last song that the band played was Have it all. It was a kind of a gift and prayer for their listeners. Brilliant stuff!

In the beginning, Chaska Potter also spoke about the band’s collaboration with renowned guitarist and songwriter Jason Mraz.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2024