In the 2007 film \u201cAcross the Universe,\u201d actor Evan Rachel Wood plays a starry-eyed character named Lucy living in the height of the psychedelic 1960s. The movie \u2013 at its core a musical powered by The Beatles \u2013 follows Lucy and other characters like Jude and Prudence through hallmarks of the era, as they protest the Vietnam War, find community in New York\u2019s thriving arts scene and journey to other dimensions with the aid of substances like LSD.<\/p>\n
Wood and her musical collaborator Zane Carney will revisit some of those themes in a psychedelia-themed concert in Denver this Friday, and the venue couldn\u2019t be more appropriate. The duo, which goes by EVAN + ZANE, will play against the trippy backdrop of the Perplexiplex at Meow Wolf Convergence Station. (Tickets cost $25.)<\/p>\n
EVAN + ZANE was a project born out of mutual respect; that much is clear during a phone call with both Wood and Carney as they continually compliment each other\u2019s prowess on vocals, guitar and music history.<\/p>\n
The duo began playing together in 2018, several years after Wood starred in the vaudevillian music video for Carney\u2019s \u201cLove Me Chase Me,\u201d and developed what they call a cabaret concept for live performances.<\/p>\n
Each show, EVAN + ZANE chooses a different theme for which Wood curates a playlist of songs that fit the topic. While all the songs they perform are covers, Wood and Carney perform original interpretations of them, often dripping in dreamy reverb. No era is off-limits.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what makes us unique and not necessarily cover band, but a cabaret band,\u201d Wood said. \u201cWe\u2019ll date all the way back to 1920 to all the way present day. And we usually pick more obscure songs and more indie songs, and alternative ones and jazz songs. We’ve done metal — you name it, we’ve done it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fans may hear modern artists like St. Vincent and Phantogram juxtaposed against classics like Jimi Hendrix and Mazzy Star all in one night, she added.<\/p>\n
The idea to produce sets around different themes started with a “heartbreak” show one Feb. 15, which has become an annual recurrence. Since then, EVAN + ZANE has tackled more than 20 themes such as the color blue, jealousy, and Disney, and performed 600 different songs, Carney said.<\/p>\n
For the Denver show, Wood tapped into the sounds of the 1960s and \u201870s that she grew up loving, as well as choice cuts from rave culture and more modern psychedelic bands. That includes at least one tune from The Beatles for which Carney has a special guitar pedal, though he chose not to say the exact one to maintain the surprise.<\/p>\n