Frontwoman Thao Nguyen, originally from Virginia (a College of William & Mary double-major in sociology/women's studies), was an infectiously confident center of attention. Rocking about or standing in place with bare legs churning energetically under a thigh-high dress, she sang her thoughtful, at times sexually empowered songs with unfettered emotion - while running captivating soul/blues/quasi-jazz lines on her hollow-body electric guitar. The three men of the Get Down Stay Down took their cues in sympathetic backup, especially ace drummer Willis Thompson.

Nguyen launched into "Beat (Health, Life and Fire)" off last year's We Brave Bee Stings and All with hooting abandon, then followed up with an impassioned "Body" from the recent Know Better Learn Faster; the spell never let up. Later, Nguyen brought out members of her Kill Rock Stars labelmates, tourmates, and recent studio collaborators, the Portland Cello Project, to enrich the sound. The Oregon-based PCP, five cellists sometimes abetted by singer-instrumentalist Justin Power, had enthralled earlier with a too-short set of originals (including Samantha Kushnick's ode to her Philly sweetheart) and choice covers. The covers ranged from the Spanish classical composer Manuel de Falla's "Ritual Fire Dance" to a dynamic "Mouth for War" by Texan metal hellions Pantera, and a closing "Hey Ya!" with the audience enlisted to heartily sing the OutKast hit.

For an encore, Thao took a request and accompanying toothbrush from a fan to rhythmically bounce it off her fretted acoustic guitar strings for her early song "Moped." She then got back to her stated original plan: an "über-band" blowout of "Feet Asleep" with all the night's musicians onstage, including opener David Shultz and the Skyline, a bespectacled young Virginian and his band.