Greg Holden with Butch Walker at Scoot Inn

Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to see Greg Holden open for Butch Walker on his “The Last Days of Summer” tour.

When I go to see a new artist live, I almost never listen to their music beforehand (I like being surprised each time). In Greg Holden’s case, thankfully, I ended up discovering an artist that I really love.

Greg Holden’s set was very relaxed and inviting, he encouraged the crowd to come in close and made it feel like we were all friends- there was very little disconnect between him and the audience, something I value in every show I attend, especially when I’m seeing an artist for the first time. He made it very easy to get to know him, telling stories and joking with the fans as they trickled in.

We all know how much I love an acoustic set, and Greg’s did not disappoint. For some, one man and his guitar on stage might not be the most exciting, but for me, at least, it shows the true skill of the performer, he didn’t have anything to hide behind, every bit of the set was dependent upon him and he made it look effortless.

My favorite part of the set was when he covered "Home” by Phillip Phillips (but is it really a cover if he wrote it? jury’s still out on that one). I loved hearing the song from a different perspective, it almost felt like a totally different story in the way that he performed the lyrics that we’ve all been singing word for word for all these years.

Overall, I wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but I’m so glad that I had the opportunity to see someone so talented in such an intimate setting. I often find myself sticking to the same types of shows, feeling very comfortable in one genre, but this show reminded me of just how much music is out there waiting to be discovered, that going out of your comfort zone just might result in something wonderful.

Check out the gallery below, and definitely give Greg a listen, my favorite is Hold On Tight!


Gallery : Grandson at Mohawk

FINALLY. I have been waiting forever to see Grandson live, and wow did he not disappoint. A Grandson show is wild, thought-provoking, and absolutely thrilling and to see an artist using their platform to promote political change with such passion and boldness the way that Grandson does throughout his set is exciting, and makes the experience that much more meaningful. 

After the set I got the chance to meet with him and speak a little about what his music has meant for me personally, from solidarity to music that makes me feel like I can conquer the world,  he listened to me ramble so intently, and was one of the most genuine people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting, so if you have the opportunity, get out to a Grandson show ASAP, you won't want to miss it. 

Check out the gallery below! 

- Marissa 

Jesse McCartney with Nina Nesbitt and Public

Um. I can't even believe I'm writing this right now, and middle school me definitely thinks I'm the coolest person on the planet.

Last night I had the opportunity to see Jesse Mccartney's Better With You tour, his first in four years, with Nina Nesbitt and Public. 

To start the show, Public was an absolute powerhouse, they completely dominated the stage and warmed up the crowd with a mixture of their latest music and a cover of Toxic by Britney Spears that was easily one of my favorite parts of the whole night. I absolutely fell in love with everything about them and admittedly did some light twitter/instagram stalking after their set. 

After this year's SXSW, I became obsessed with Nina Nesbitt's singles "The Best You Had" and "Somebody Special", I had every lyric, chord, and nuance of each song memorized, so to say I was excited to see her play again would be an understatement. For this performance, Nina chose to do a very stripped back set, with each song being played with either a piano or an acoustic guitar. Normally, sets like these are a sort of lull in the overall mood of the show, a dip in the energy before you're expected to dance for an hour, but Nina made every song feel like she was playing it in a living room for her friends, it felt very intimate and inviting, everything about it was perfection and not at all what I was expecting. 

and then came Jesse Freaking McCartney.

To be completely honest, my initial motive for going to this show was pure nostalgia. Growing up, Jesse McCartney was right up there with the Jonas Brothers and Aaron Carter on my list of celebrity crushes and his biggest hits have remained staples in my road trip playlists.  I don't think I've ever seen someone with the amount of charisma that Jesse McCartney possesses, his appeal seems effortless, and has only grown over the years. My favorite thing about this set was the seamless transition between old and new, he blended in his latest singles with the songs I grew up with and I loved every second of it. I wasn't very familiar with his newest album going into the show, but by the end of each song I was singing along and dancing right there with the die-hard fans, thoroughly impressed with his ability to create consistently great music (not a lot of people who started their career so young can say the same.) 

Dallas was only the third night of this tour, so if you haven't yet, I recommend you buy a ticket immediately, you won't regret it. 

- Marissa 

 

Check out the gallery below! 

 

Smallpools with Great Good Fine Ok and Half the Animal at Stubb's

WOW. This shoot was a thousand percent the hardest I've ever done, but still one of the most fun shows that I've been to.

A few weeks ago, Smallpools brought their Spring is Sprung Tour to Austin along with two of my favorite bands, Half the Animal and Great Good Fine Ok. 

Half the Animal never disappoints, they have this unique ability to make people that have never heard of them completely fall in love by the end of the first song and maintain a constant energy and positivity throughout their entire set. In addition to being wildly talented, they’re also some of the sweetest, funniest, and most inspiring individuals i’ve ever met. I have had the pleasure of seeing these guys a few times now and each show just gets better and better, I know they're about to take the world by storm. 

The world that is created by a Great Good Fine Ok set is one with an abundance of neon glow sticks and a sense that you may never have as much fun again as you will in the short time they're performing. Even on a shoebox stage (almost literally, the stage at Stubb's indoors is the smallest I think on the whole planet), these guys performed their hearts out and had everyone dancing along, screaming the words while waving their glow sticks and flashing lights in the air. After this set, I found myself obsessively checking twitter, refreshing their feed hoping they'll announce another tour so I can see them again as soon as I possibly can. 

It seemed almost criminal to have Smallpools on such a small stage (if I'm being honest, all three bands deserved to play a bigger room), the crowd seemed to overflow out of every door, groups of people huddled up by each entrance to try and catch a glimpse of the band. Despite being cramped and hot, everyone in the audience was enthralled from the start, the energy created by Half the Animal was only upheld by Great Good Fine Ok and then amplified when Smallpools took to the stage, I can't wait to see what Smallpools does next.