'Shame On You' if you missed the Indigo Girls at the Veranda Stadium

Checking out a new local music venue is always an exciting prospect, especially when it is an outdoor location, something the Lowcountry doesn't exactly have in abundance.

When the Family Circle Tennis Stadium opened a few years back, it gave the Charleston area not just a world-class tennis facility, but also an arena perfect for outdoor concerts.

Since then, many notable acts have played the site, including The Flaming Lips, Don Henley, OAR, Sugarland, and Hall & Oates, as well as two editions of the Chazzfest music festival.

During those two years that Chazzfest ran, one of the cooler stages was the one adjacent to the clubhouse, which featured performances by bands such as Toots and the Maytals, Sam Bush and Drive-By Truckers.

While Chazzfest is, unfortunately, gone, the powers that be at the Family Circle Stadium apparently saw fit to keep using the clubhouse court area for smaller shows that might be too intimate for the large main stadium.

That's how The Veranda came to be.

Holding about 2,500 people, The Veranda is designed to be a smaller outdoor venue for some of the smaller touring acts.

Last Saturday night, The Veranda definitely proved its worth as The Indigo Girls made a stop in Charleston to play for an audience that included many longtime fans.

Singer-songwriter Javier opened the show with an impressive set that found him playing everything from R&B to country to flamenco guitar.

Indigo Girls Amy Ray and Emily Saliers apparently saw Javier performing a few years back while on tour, and were impressed enough to offer the young artist a slot opening for them on select shows.

During Javier's set, some fans demonstrated that ever-present Charleston hospitality by tossing their bottle of insect repellent to the singer after he complained about being eaten alive by mosquitoes.

After a short break, Ray and Saliers stepped onstage to enthusiastic applause. The duo has been performing in Charleston since even before they recorded their first album, playing in clubs downtown and in Mount Pleasant.

As a result, they were visibly happy and at ease onstage. Beginning with "Love of Our Lives," a tune off the duo's latest CD, "Poseidon and the Bitter Bug."

"Devotion" and "Least Complicated" were both met with knowing cheers from the crowd, which also supplied the "nah-nah-nahs" at the end of "Least Complicated."

Ray and Saliers were to have been joined by a keyboard player, but that third musician never materialized, leaving the pair to do what they do best with just themselves and two acoustic guitars.

"Driver Education" and "What Are You Like," two more songs from the new CD, got a good reception.

"Power of Two," one of the Indigo Girls' more beautiful compositions, soon followed. Of all the new songs, "Fleet of Hope" was one of the better ones, especially the line "You're all washed up when Poseidon has his day."

Midway through the show Saliers left the stage briefly while Ray performed a great reworked version of Mark Knopfler's "Romeo and Juliet."

Other songs in the main set included "Shame On You," "Get Out the Map," "Sugar Tongue" and "Jonas and Ezekiel."

For "Closer To Fine," one of the duo's best-known songs, Ray and Saliers brought Javier back to the stage to sing with them.

The encore featured yet another new song, "Second Time Around," as well as the traditional show-ender, "Galileo."

As always Ray and Saliers were great. The two women's voices just seem to go together naturally, much in the same way that Paul Simon's vocals meld perfectly with those of Art Garfunkel.

Even after 20 years of recording music together, The Indigo Girls manage to sound as fresh as ever.

Despite it being a muggy early fall evening with the bugs in plentiful supply, the rain that had been threatening the area all afternoon never fell during the performance.

Saturday's show proved that the idea behind The Veranda definitely works. Stay tuned for announcements of more shows at the venue.

Contact Devin Grant at chucktowncritic@yahoo.com