Indigo Girls play Maine a lot. This show might be a little different. | Column
Emily Saliers, left, and Amy Ray of Indigo Girls. (Photo by Shervin Lainez)
Indigo Girls, the duo of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, are headlining Thompson’s Point in Portland on Aug. 25 for the first time.
Picture several thousands fans outside by the ocean singing along with “Galileo” and “Least Complicated,” and you’ll have an idea of why this show is selling well.
I’ve been in a low-key hysterical holding pattern since the show got announced several months ago and feel comfortable making the bold assertion that I’ve seen Indigo Girls more than any other band.
The harmonies, songwriting and musicianship of Ray and Saliers continues to draw me and much of their fanbase in, as does their activism around racial, social justice and environmental causes.
Some of my favorites from the Grammy-winning folk rock duo include “Kid Fears,” “Fugitive,” “Go,” “Welcome Me” and “The Language Or the Kiss.”
The show at Thompson’s Point is Indigo Girls’ first performance in Maine since their April 17 social media post that contained a significant health update.
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Saliers and Ray sat together while Saliers unpacked why her voice is “not what it once was.”
She explained that she was diagnosed with the movement disorders cervical dystonia and an essential tremor. The latter, said Saliers, causes involuntary shakes or movement that effect all the parts of her singing apparatus. Neither condition can be reversed.
Saliers thanked fans for years of support and asked for grace during shows this year.
“We’re gonna work hard to make it good, and then whatever the future holds we’ll see,” she said. Ray added that the Indigo Girls’ central message of love, self-esteem and activism is ever-present. “We want to keep playing and do our best,” she said.
The Indigo Girls have always been remarkably transparent with their fans, and this may be the most profound thing they’ve ever shared.
The band is Ray and Saliers on vocals and guitar, violinist Lyris Hung, Carol Isaacs on keys and accordion, Clare Kenny on bass, guitarist Jeff Fielder, drummer TK Johnson and Lucy Wainwright Roche on backing vocals and guitar.
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Performances now feature some adjusted arrangements and more support from backing singers to help compensate for what Saliers describes as a vibrato in her voice that she didn’t used to have, which makes sustained notes difficult.
The response to has been overwhelmingly positive, and from everything I’ve seen online, the shows have been wonderful.
Indigo Girls, from Georgia, have played in Maine many times through the years, including an epic co-headlining show with Melissa Etheridge in Bangor last summer, which was a repeat of what happened the summer before at the Bowl in the Pines in Sidney.
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In 2019, Indigo Girls played a sold-out show at the State Theatre. In 2016, it was Jonathan’s in Ogunquit and, years before that, Stone Mountain Arts Center in Brownfield and Merrill Auditorium. In the mid-’90s, Indigo Girls slayed at what was then called the Cumberland County Civic Center.
Then, there was that time in 2007 when they played a free show at L.L. Bean with Brandi Carlile as the opener. Carlile returned the favor by having them open her Thompson’s Point show during the summer as 2022, which is the last time Indigo Girls played in Portland. I got in line at 7 a.m. on the day of that show, so I could be on the railing, and still have no regrets.
Before moving to Maine in 1994, I attended countless other Indigo Girls shows in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, including when they opened for R.E.M. at the Worcester Centrum in 1989. The only song I knew was “Closer to Fine,” but I still remember the moment R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe walked onto the stage to join them on “Kid Fears,” a track from their second, self-titled breakthrough album, which was two months old at the time of that concert.
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Point being, every Indigo Girls fan has a story. Heck, for some, the entryway was the hilarious use of “Closer to Fine” in the 2023 hit film “Barbie.” Whatever gets you there, right?
Be sure to get to the venue in time to catch the opening set from Lucy Wainwright Roche. Her 2018 album “Little Beast,” with songs like “Soft Line” and “Heroin” is tremendous. She’s also been known to bust out a righteous cover of Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down.”
One of my favorite pieces of fun Indigo trivia is that Lucy’s mom, Suzzy, was part of the sister trio The Roches with Lucy’s aunts Terre and the late Maggie. On the 1992 Indigo Girls album “Rites of Passage,” The Roches sing backing vocals on the tracks “Airplane” and “Virginia Woolf.” Lucy has known Ray and Saliers since she was a child.
If you’ve seen the Indigo Girls before, you already know the warmth, camaraderie and almost campfire-like spirit that runs through their shows. If you’re new to the experience, I can’t wait to join you for what promises to be a memorable evening of music and community, which we all could use.
Here’s my playlist of favorite Indigo Girls songs:
IF YOU GO:
7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 25. Thompson’s Point, Portland, $53 in advance, $61 day of show. statetheatreportland.com.
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Aimsel Ponti is a music writer and content producer for the Portland Press Herald. She has been obsessed with – and inspired by – music since she listened to Monkees records borrowed from the town. More by Aimsel Ponti
