The Future Is Voting Tour started on Sunday night at the Austin club Emo’s. HeadCount put together the six-stop tour in conjunction with headliner Jim James with the aim of leaving music fans better informed and inspired to vote on Election Day. Each event will be a hybrid of a concert and Town Hall meeting open to candidates from all parties. Last night’s tour opener was highlighted by performances from Jim James and The Suffers’ Kam Franklin as well as appearances from seven different candidates for office including Austin Mayor Steve Adler.
Jim James performed a 45-minute set that included a talk about respecting people’s views and finding a common middle ground “to bring respect” and “peace” back to the dialogue. “I know that we can find each other in the middle,” James said. “I know if you really sit down with somebody who is different than you and look them in the eye and feel their truth and they feel your truth … Yes, you might walk away agreeing to disagree about topics a, b and c and whatever. But I think there’s going to be a whole lot of shit in the middle we can agree about and that’s how we can change the world.” James played a total of 10 songs including the My Morning Jacket classic “I’m Amazed” and four tunes from his 2018 album Uniform Distortion and its companion LP Uniform Clarity.
HeadCount executive director Andy Bernstein discussed the purpose of the tour at the beginning of the evening, while other speakers included Athens City Council member Linqua Franqa, Mayor Adler, Republican State House candidate Kyle Austin and Libertarian congressional candidate Clark Patterson. Kam Franklin’s set also featured a mix of performances — including a Korn cover — and talk about cannabis legalization and the importance of voting. Nick Sanborn of Sylvan Esso, a.k.a. Made Of Oak, concluded the night with a DJ set. HeadCount registered over 800 voters in Texas at last night’s event, the nearby Austin City Limits Music Festival and two Odesza shows. The Future Of Voting Tour visits Texas State University in San Marcos on Tuesday. Head here for more information on ways to support or attend tour stops. Watch a portion of Jim’s set captured by Andy Bernstein:
