Review: Benjamin Booker at Eulogy

Eight years after releasing his sophomore album, Witness, New Orleans-based singer/songwriter/guitarist Benjamin Booker returned this January with Lower — a record met with widespread acclaim. The long wait proved worthwhile as Lower stands out as one of 2025’s first great releases. Teaming up with producer Kenny Segal, Booker has crafted an album that feels both fresh and urgent while retaining the retro charm of past works, tackling themes of systemic racism and homosexuality with striking emotional depth.

But if you had wandered into Eulogy on the evening of March 2, fresh off a day of Asheville Mardi Gras revelry, you’d never have guessed you were about to witness something special. The sparse turnout gave no indication of the weight of the performance that lay ahead.

The night kicked off with a set by Segal, who has cemented himself as one of hip-hop’s most innovative beat-makers. Positioned behind a table, twisting knobs and layering sounds, his set wasn’t a visual spectacle, but the music spoke for itself. His collage of funky beats, warped electronics, and decayed textures filled the room with a mesmerizing, full-volume immersion — well worth arriving early for.

By the time Booker took the stage, I had hoped the crowd would grow, but Asheville let me down. Fortunately, the lack of bodies in the room didn’t seem to faze the headliner or his bandmates. Joined by Segal on keys and Mekala Session on drums, the trio delivered a performance that felt far bigger than their minimalist setup. Segal’s deconstructed soundscapes added depth, while Session’s boisterous drumming was as precisely in time as it was entertaining to watch.

The hour-long performance leaned heavily on Lower, reaffirming the album’s potency. Booker’s raspy, impassioned vocals cut through waves of distortion and syncopated beats, making songs like “Same Kind of Lonely” and “Slow Dance in a Gay Bar” feel even more intimate and soulful in the small venue. And when the band tore into “Violent Shiver” from Booker’s self-titled debut, they proved they could still rock out.

The perfectly concise set left me hungry for more — so, hopefully, the thin crowd won’t discourage Booker from returning to Asheville on his next tour.

(Photos by Jonny Leather)

Kenny Segal