Photos and Review by Bethany Anna Packer
Milky Chance photos HERE
X Ambassadors photos HERE
Our beloved Red Sox had some competition for attention last Thursday night. The winding line down Landsdowne Street as far as the eye could see was not for the entry to Fenway, but for the House of Blues for the SECOND sold out show to see Milky Chance and X Ambassadors.
The venue was packed to the gills for these newcomers to the pop music scene. I was shocked and impressed by the turnout these shows pulled, and I am a fan myself.
X Ambassadors came together in New York about three years ago and recently exploded onto the pop music scene. They opened the show to an already filled venue and lived up to all expectations. Their energetic performance of rock flavored with a touch of hip-hop was captivating to say the least. After escorting his visually impaired brother and keyboard player Calvin to his keyboard, Sam Harris moved around the stage with a contagious energy. Sam sang, played guitar and even sampled us some saxophone throughout the show. The rest of the band shared the same enthusiasm and Calvin impressed us all while playing the keyboard flawlessly, dancing and head banging through out the entire show. Even without his vision he didn’t miss a single beat. The band engaged the crowd throughout the show, standing on the speakers for their most popular hits like “Renegade”. My personal favorite was when they took it down a notch to give us a goose bump inducing performance of “Unsteady”. They closed out their set by rocking out to their hit “Jungle”. The band wrapped up with a bang as Sam stood up on the barricades, supported by the fans as he belted out the lyrics with the crowd.
Milky Chance was next to take the stage. During the break between sets, stage hands set up an elaborate back drop consisting of a colorful city scape and giant hanging dream catchers that resembled full moons in the moody lighting scheme. The stage lights were a perfect compliment to lead singer Clemens Rehbein’s hauntingly beautiful voice. The German trio delivered a different, however equally captivating energy than their predecessor. Their beautiful and unique sound of indie pop with reggae influence and electronic beat blanketed the crowd. Sampling from their album SADNECESSARY, the crowd ate up every moment. Fans enthusiastically moved along to hits like “Stolen Dance” and “Flashjunked Mind”. Clemens wholly stealing my attention with his raspy heartfelt performance of “Love Land”. The show ended too early leaving us wanting more.
I now understood why these two new sensational artists sold out not one, but two consecutive nights in Boston.