Review: Bettman & Halpin Shine at McCabe’s Guitar Shop

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Bluegrass duo Bettman & Halpin hit the stage at McCabe’s Guitar Shop in Santa Monica and delivered a solid performance Sunday night.

The duo, composed of Stephanie Bettman and Luke Halpin, is touring while promoting their new album, Diamond, and the choice of venue could not have been more perfect.

The walls of the small little “theater box” were filled with guitars of every shape and function.

The audience gave the duo (who are Angelinos) a much-deserved standing ovation while applauding once the show ended. The chemistry that Bettman & Halpin have on stage is genuine. The performance they had was a breath of fresh air in the midst of how far off-track the music industry has gone.

Bettman & Halpin proved that fundamentals will always prevail. Their lyrics contained profound substance and meaning, and their great musical composition blew everyone away – song-by-song performed.

Every song hijacked your heart and took you through an emotional ride. Such was the case with “Bluestem,” a tune that Bettman wrote about a deceased old friend who helped the duo out when they first started. The song was uplifting despite the lyrical narrative and backstory.

“Flowers and Stone,” another of the favorites during the night, tells the story of a cemetery in Hugo, Okla. A section in the cemetery was reserved for circus artists. Bettman was once a trapeze artist. It was a very emotional and peaceful number and just from everyone’s wide-eyed frozen reaction after the last notes left the room, you could tell many hearts were wrung.

Bettman & Halpin were also very interactive with the audience. Their charm put everyone at ease. They cracked jokes, made funny observations, and felt comfortable on stage.

Bettman & Halpin formed in 2007, and since then have been enchanting fans with their unique brand of Americana music. It’s heavily rooted in folk and bluegrass.

To the surprise of no one, the Bettman & Halpin are true professionals doing what they love to do: music.

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