Tab Benoit & Ghalia Volt – Des Plaines Theater, Des Plaines, October 4, 2026

2 hours ago

4 min read

By: La'Keba Garcia Gelardi & Linda Cain

Photos: Dianne Bruce Dunklau

To see more photos of Tab & Ghalia, visit our FB photo albums page: https://www.facebook.com/chicagobluesguide/photos_albums

Tab Benoit and Ghalia Volt Bring the Heat

to the Des Plaines Theatre

October 4, 2026

Des Plaines Theatre | Des Plaines, Illinois

By La’Keba Garcia Gelardi & Linda Cain

Photos: Dianne Bruce Dunklau

The blues were alive and kicking inside the century-old Des Plaines Theatre as Louisiana blues guitarist Tab Benoit and Belgian blues-rock sensation Ghalia Volt delivered an evening of scorching guitar work, soulful vocals, and infectious grooves. With musical influences stretching from the Mississippi Delta to the Louisiana bayou, both artists brought their own distinctive flavor to the historic stage.

Opening the show, New Orleans-based, Belgian-born singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Ghalia Volt (last name: Vauthier ) came out swinging with “Reap What You Sow,” pairing her gritty, emotionally charged vocals with a driving guitar arrangement. She kept the energy flowing with “Meet You Down the Road” and “No Ice Please,” serving up a potent mix of blues-rock, roots music, and rock-and-roll swagger. Her exciting slide guitar playing ranks right up there with Bonnie Raitt and Joanna Connor. Volt was backed by a versatile, pumping rhythm section that included female bass player Shannon Wilk and Tab Benoit’s drummer, Chip Vayenas.

Volt shifted gears with a rockabilly-flavored rendition of “You Gotta Move,” the Mississippi Delta blues classic closely associated with Mississippi Fred McDowell. Her lively interpretation gave the familiar tune a fresh rhythmic bounce before she wrapped up her set with the danceable “Wreckin' & Rollin',” bringing her 40-minute opening performance to a spirited finish. Volt was rewarded with a robust standing ovation.

Cajun bluesman Tab Benoit is one of the most colorful, accomplished and passionate performers on the scene today. He has received many honors in his career. He's twice been named the B.B. King Entertainer of the Year and was inducted in the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. He's won several Blues Music Awards and has been nominated four times for a GRAMMY.

He opened up Tab Benoit's Lagniappe Music Cafe in his hometown of Houma, Louisiana, to give young artists a place to perform. He's a concerned conservationist and founder of Voice of the Wetlands, an organization that promotes preservation and awareness of the coastal wetlands of Louisiana. He's been honored for his efforts by the state and the governor. He formed his own label called Whiskey Bayou, and recently released his first studio album in 13 years, I Hear Thunder. He produced, engineered, mixed and mastered the album. He wrote all the songs with his pals Anders Osborne and George Porter, Jr.

Taking the stage –decorated with an open-jawed, toothy alligator head sitting on an amp behind him -- Tab Benoit wasted little time digging into the Louisiana blues with “Medicine,” a powerful song he wrote about addiction. His gritty vocals, biting guitar tone, and emotional string bends gave the music its unmistakable swamp-blues character. He followed with the sorrowful, soulful 1967 ballad by Louisiana’s Toussaint McCall, “Nothing Takes the Place of You,” that tugged at our heartstrings.

Given his background as a one-time standup comic, Benoit knows how to spin humorous tales while tuning up between songs. He let us know that he doesn’t use a set list and that “I play what I feel.” He also reminisced about playing the drums -- his first instrument as a child – and explained that he still loves to play drums and that he likes to play his guitar like he plays his drums. He then launched into a Cajun two-step song with a beat that surely gets folks back home on the dance floor.

On the groove-laden “Why, Why,” Benoit settled into a deep, funky rhythmic pocket, allowing his soulful delivery and fluid guitar phrasing to carry the song, with a message that ponders the state of the world we live in. Longtime bass player Corey Duplechin and more recent drummer Chip Vayenas served as the perfect rhythmic engine driving Tab’s musical excursions and improvisations.

Benoit segued into the slow, deep blues of “Darkness,” about a troubled relationship. With his long tangled hair covering his face, sweat dripping and eyes closed, he sang and played with intense emotion and authenticity that earned him a standing ovation.

Benoit followed with the contrast of a song that featured thumping bass and drums, wild shredding guitar riffs and shrieking, string-bending notes soaring from his weathered, vintage Telecaster Thinline (played with no special effects or pedals and plugged directly into his amp). At the end, Benoit spoke about the importance of music bringing people together. He and the band exited the stage to loud applause and cheers for more.

They soon returned for the first encore, “Still Gray,” a slow, sad, country blues ballad about a lost love that featured Benoit’s pleading vocals and melodic, sorrowful guitar picking.

One of the evening's highlights came during the second encore of Benoit's 90-minute set when Ghalia Volt returned to the stage with her slide guitar for the blues rocker “I Hear Thunder,” the title track from his 2024 album. Her expressive slide work added another layer of intensity to Benoit's swampy guitar grooves, making their collaboration a memorable, roof-raising time of the night.

Overall, the evening was a fun and satisfying blend of contrasting styles and shared musical chemistry, demonstrating that blues music is indeed a universal language.