Following the theme of consistently changing things up, Kaki King’s current tour is a partial return to her acoustic musical roots, while also presenting itself as something entirely new.
King, a world-class guitarist and musician, comes to WOW Hall Wednesday night to play an intimate acoustic performance. The show presents King in a more classical format; the sit-down concert caters to the 31-year-old guitarist’s early years as a solo act.
Part of a national tour that stretches across both the East and West coasts, King is playing only acoustic shows. The tour also pays homage to King’s first album, “Everybody Loves You,” which is entirely acoustic.
Aside from the concert’s unique structure, Wednesday’s show is a rare opportunity to see a guitarist who is considered to be one of the greatest.
“She’s one of the most amazing guitarists I’ve ever seen,” said Calyn Kelly, program coordinator for WOW Hall.
“It’s amazing watching her play. It’s (all) at once percussive and melodic, athletic and graceful.”
In 2006, King was the only female — and the youngest — to show up on Rolling Stone’s “New School of Guitar Gods” list. King was also nominated for the Golden Globes’ Best Original Score for her work with Eddie Vedder and Michael Brook for their work on the “Into the Wild” soundtrack. King has also scored music for the “Twilight” movies.
Much of the acclaim King has received in her 12-year career comes from her unique and skillfully rich approach to playing the guitar. Developed organically, King is best known for the finger-style plucking of her guitar and her percussion and fret-tapping techniques. Her approach involves complex tunings between songs.
King’s musical style took shape while the Atlanta, Ga., native was attending college at New York University. Developing her own specific style, King played a few small shows and was known for playing for change in subway stations.
Since her college years, King has released five albums and two EPs, all with very different musical approaches. As a musician, King is an artist who has chosen to avoid categorizations by consistently reinventing her music. Each of her five albums displays very different approaches to music. Her recent 2010 album, “Juniors,” involves King playing in a band format with three other musicians.
For this tour, however, King will be without any other instruments or musicians. The new addition is that King will play multiple guitars throughout the show. Some of the guitars featured will include the harp guitar, a high-tuned 12-string, a seven-string fan fret nylon guitar, as well as her original acoustic guitar made by Ovation Guitars.
On her blog, King said her decision to feature multiple guitars was the best way for her to present her music in a new way. King has adapted many of her pre-existing songs to fit the different styles of guitar, while also covering a few of her favorite tracks for these shows.
Although King is billed as being a solo act, she will not be the only artist playing at the WOW Hall on Wednesday night. Opening for King is another solo artist, Megan Washington. Washington is a singer-songwriter yet to release an album, but who is currently touring the U.S. with a lot of buzz.

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