Elliot Greer is a Scottish-born singer-songwriter who has been based in New York as he pursues a career in music. He’s played at many of New York’s iconic venues, from the hallowed Carnegie Hall to one of my personal favorites Rockwood Music Hall, the place I spent most of my week and weekend nights starting out as a music writer. On April 3, a showcase brought us both to a new venue. Greer, who recently signed with Arista Records, played to a highly intimate crowd at the East Village’s Heaven Can Wait.
Much of the audience in attendance were either from the record label celebrating Greer’s signing or friends of the label. An estimate of 50 people feels fair funneled into the small nightclub for the showcase. I found my way in about four minutes before Greer took the stage and huddled next to a large plant where I watched between branches as Greer took the rather small stage with his acoustic guitar as applause roared over the venue. The Scottish artist asked the crowd if they were ready to hear “sad, sad songs” as he settled for his solo set, tuning his guitar in preparation for the beginning notes of ‘The End.’
It wasn’t long into the first verse of ‘The End’ before Greer’s impressive vocals moved me. His voice is both beautiful and striking. He had a vocal run near the last verse of ‘The End’ that if the showcase ended there, I would have left happy. The conviction in Greer’s voice is what elevates the storytelling in his lyrics. When he calls his music “sad, sad songs” it’s not a lie. You can feel the emotion behind the lyrics as he explores the evidence of a closed relationship, whether it be sudden weight loss, now empty drawers, or other behavior changes, before he addresses the true emotion, which is the lingering pain left behind from the end.
It’s the theme of loss that is all too easy to relate to, and Greer portrays it wonderfully in his lyrics. His next song explores that relatability even further. Greer tells the crowd about a time that he scrolled the internet only to find recent success of his exes being celebrated online which birthed the song ‘All My Exes Are Doing Better Than Me.’
While I’d assume most of the crowd can’t relate to their ex being nominated for a Grammy, listeners understand the feelings Greer sings about. He notes that it is his first song that caused a ripple and his first hint of streaming success.
Without realizing it, Greer is taking the audience on a bus ride stopping at different memories on his route as an artist. He tells the story of spending years hustling as a musician in New York City and being invited to be a backup singer for Ashley McBryde and John Osbourne on The Late Show with Jimmy Fallon. While he was happy for the gig and opportunity on the Late Night stage, in that moment, he wanted something more.
He evoked those feelings one day in a coffee shop rather frantically into a voice memo (which he believes may have frightened other patrons) but the lyrics that came to him in that moment were, “I’ve been down this road a couple times before” the beginning of his now popular song ‘Bleed.’
He told the showcase crowd about his feelings of being rejected from label to label as he pursued his career. At that moment, the magnitude of this night hits me. As he relives chapters in his story, we are experiencing a highlight.
At one point, Greer notes how nice it is to play for this “engaged” crowd. An audience that is tuned into his every move rather than the outdated hotel gigs that are still listed on his website where a crowd could be heard talking over him. Tonight, Greer and his music was listened to, felt, and applauded. It was a physical turning of the page onto the blank page of the next stage of what feels will be an exciting career.
A quick “Elliot Greer” search on Google found old bios of his, which made his April 3 showcase even more special.
“For years, I’ve auditioned and gotten so close to being on Broadway… only to barely miss the mark. I’ve given my all to this city, industry, and relationships – and I often feel like I have nothing to show for it. All I have are the lessons I’ve learned – and that’s how this EP was born,” Greer writes.
The auditions, close calls, and years of hard work have paid off for Greer. After countless gigs at small clubs, busking in Central Park, and background singer work, on this night, Greer was in front of a crowd where everyone knew his name.
More than memorable the showcase with Greer was moving. It’s certainly a start, but it feels like this showcase and being signed to an incredible label with Arista Records is the launching pad in the career of the rising artist.
Listen to Greer’s music and learn about the all-too-relateable nature of his songwriting and experience the power harnessed in his voice.