PORT ANGELES — Well I love my baby better / better than a brand-new sweater /I love my baby he keeps me warm at night … I love my baby better than nice warm weather/ I love my baby forever and a night …
So Kate Voss purrs as her baby, Jason Goessl, unfurls a warm wave of rhythm from his guitar. This Seattle-bred husband-and-wife duo, known as Sundae + Mr. Goessl, are set to live-stream an “In [Your] Living Room” concert tonight.
Another in the series broadcast online by the Juan de Fuca Foundation, the show will start at 6 p.m. with no admission charge.
To connect with the 90-minute live stream, see JFFA.org/live and watch there or, to comment and interact, click over to JFFA’s YouTube page.
“We have become wildly accustomed to virtual performances,” Voss told the Peninsula Daily News via email.
“In addition to our professional sound gear and engineer — Mr. Goessl is our sound tech and resident guitar virtuoso — what sets us apart from other live streams is how diverse our set is and how engaging we are with the crowd.
“One of the aspects of live performance we miss most is the fun we get to have with our audience, so we try to keep the energy going by participating in the comments, playing lots of different instruments and continuing the ‘comedy,’” she added.
The show is for all ages, Voss promised, and while Sundae + Mr. Goessl’s music has won awards, their comedy has not — and that’s all part of their act.
These two “are an entertainment extravaganza,” said Kari Chance, JFFA’s administrative manager.
“We’ve presented them before as a larger ensemble, Kate Voss and the Big Boss Band. So we knew what to expect,” but then, earlier this week, Chance and JFFA executive director Kayla Oakes ran a sound and tech check with just the duo.
“We were both left in awe,” Chance said, at the way Voss and Goessl create a full band by themselves.
“Kate plays a mean melodica,” Oakes noted, adding Voss has her own way of mixing stories, songs — and a new instrument for the Sundae shows, the bass ukulele.
Voss and Goessl are recently married, having connected eight years ago through their passion for music. Their style, which some call “cowboy jazz” and others “vintage pop,” developed in the Pacific Northwest, where Voss was named the Seattle-Kobe Vocal Jazz Princess in both 2014 and 2016.
Goessl is originally from Wisconsin, where he studied music at the university in Eau Claire, played in an ensemble with saxophonist Michel Brecker and guitarist Charlie Byrd and then moved to Minneapolis, where he made a living doing gigs most nights of the week.
Driven by his “insatiable desire for creativity and elevation,” as he puts it, he set out for Seattle. There, Goessl and his guitar ranged around the musical landscape, from jazz and country to surf, metal and Brazilian.
Tonight, Sundae + Mr. Goessl are playing from OshKosh, Wis., having toured the United States in their 30-foot Winnebago. On their website, sundae andmrgoessl.com, the couple’s plans are laid out: “making fantastic music together for the rest of their lives.”
This is the fifth “In [Your] Living Room” show in the series, and the last one before the annual Juan de Fuca Festival, a hybrid event set for May 28-31. Information about the virtual and in-person events — planned for the Vern Burton Community Center and environs — is found at JFFA.org/festival and on the Juan de Fuca Foundation Facebook page, while the office can be reached at 360-457-5411.
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Jefferson County senior reporter Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-417-3509 or durbanidelapaz@peninsuladaily news.com.
