Sean Costello is a professional photographer based in LA. In his spare time, he enjoys playing bass for a number of bands.

I didn’t know much about Trevor Hall, outside of hearing a couple tunes on his Myspace page and reading his bio. Liking what I heard, I decided to go to his CD release party at the Hotel Café on Thursday.

Trevor Hall is one of those amazingly gifted musicians you have to see live to get the full experience! He started the show with a tribal chant that quickly reeled in a large crowd filled with many friends and family. By the second song, Trevor, Chris Steele on drums, and “Super” Mario on bass took the audience on a sonically delicious, lyrically nutritious, 75 minute, reggae n roots influenced, spiritual journey.

In the song “Ghosts”, he sang about rising up to meet the day and overcoming life’s obstacles. Chris Steele switched to a Cajon drum laying down a soothing percussive beat that kept the song flowing. For the song “Origami Crane,” which is a symbol for long life, prosperity and good health, Trevor deftly played melodica and sang “Which way do you fold your origami crane? Does it sing in your heart? Does it fly in your brain?” This could easily be interpreted as a reference to his music and how it makes you feel.

On the Indian titled “Om Shakti Om”, Trevor’s father joined the band on stage in singing the chorus. At this point, the audience was fully in tune with the joyous atmosphere, clapping, singing and dancing to the music. The band truly enjoys playing music and performing in front of a crowd. Trevor sang “No more you and me, no more they and we…” in a song called “Unity” about bringing the world together through love, good will and by embracing the diverse beauty of the human race. The second to last song of the night was a rousing, defiant rock anthem called “Sing the Song” about living life to the fullest – not letting anything hold you back. “Give me the strength to stand-Lift me from this quicksand.” “Righteousness rise with the strength of the thunder.”

Trevor sings, writes and performs from the heart and he truly believes in his music and lyrics. In Trevor’s words, “Music is my savior. Music is my lover.” After being a part of a Trevor Hall show, the collective experience of peace, love and all around stellar vibes left a lasting positive effect long after the show.