Alex Winston Brings Detroit Soul to Hoboken

Alex Winston may not be a household name as of yet, but the indie pop artist branded herself as a sheer class act during her first-ever performance at Maxwell's Wednesday night. Hailing from Detroit, the recent New York transplant admitted that while she had driven around Hoboken she hadn't stopped and looked around.

"I've been through Hoboken, but I haven't in Hoboken proper," she told Patch a few days before the show. So I'm looking forward to it."

But as she stepped on stage in a black jumpsuit, that showed just enough cleavage to entice the men, and a sheer flower-embroidered robe, she seemed right at home. Kicking off her set with "Last One Standing," a song that not only show her vocals off nicely but also proved that the girl who I spoke with on the phone was had a spicy side to her.

Winston fell into music when she was 10 years old. She revealed her father loved collecting instruments, which instantly sparked her interest. Although she did pick up the guitar at a young age, what's more interesting is how she strengthened her pipes. While other kids just sang along to records their parents would play in the house, Winston actually went the classical route and learned opera.

"I kind of got into opera by default," she said. "My mom's friend was an opera teacher. And at the time, I knew I wanted to sing. But at the time, that seemed the easiest and vocally the healthiest vocal lessons I could take."

But, after ten years of opera singing, she realized it just wasn't her.  

And when she rocked the stage with "Choice Notes," her energy isn't only in her voice but also how she moves about the stage. Despite the fact many acts in the past have said they could hardly see into the crowd, Winston didn't let that stop her piercing gaze go through you as if that song was dedicated to you. And with the help of her trusty "sister wives" (also known as her trio of talented backup singers), "Choice Notes" and her current single, "Locomotion," clearly shows how Motown has influenced her.

And as you watch her perform with such gusto and passion, you're reminded of the R&B and soul singers of the past who gave off the same aura like Chuck Berry who Winston was lucky enough to open for and called it an "exciting and scary experience."

Perhaps the one thing that's obvious about Winston is her love for sisterhood as she makes sure her three backup singers are always are onstage with her, in Hoboken or all the way across the pond. She also calls them her sisterwives, which is also the name of her current mini album. However, the song isn't necessarily about the dynamic we see among Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloë Sevigny and Ginnifer Goodwin on HBO's "Big Love." It goes deeper than that. "It's about meaning behind people having to share what they love and having to make compromises. We all do that."

While Winston revealed that she doesn't like sharing things she loves, she has no problem sharing the stage with the three other vocalists and four band members. During "Sister Wife," Winston shares the mic with one of the other vocalists and everyone starts holding hands midway through the track. And as they ended their quick eight-song set, Winston grabbed a friend from the audience to join the band in their last song, "Medicine," which turned into one big sing along that everyone got into.

"I have a very band mentality," she said. "And working with a band, it's not all about me. It's about the songs and everyone involved. We're a family."