The Revivalists not only made new fans of people who had a first taste of their musical capability Tuesday night, but they also revived the faith that old fans had in their music.

The Revivalists performed at the Westcott Theater Tuesday night. The seven-piece alternative rock band played a variety of fifteen songs, some old, and some from their last album “Men Against Mountains,” released last year.

Members of the audience ranged from old fans who had previously seen the band perform in various parts of the United States, to fans who had never seen them live, but discovered the band on a radio station.

Such was the band’s devotion to their music that they did not even introduce themselves in the beginning. They just jumped right into the music.

Susan Perril was seeing the band for the first time and said they sounded just like their CDs. She said  that having released three studio albums and an extended play already, the band needs to be discovered and brought to the attention of mainstream media.

Some of their hits, like “Wish I Knew,” “Gold to Glass” and “Monster,” had majority of the room singing along. In fact, it wasn’t just the old fans who were captivated by the music of The Revivalists.

Couples danced and hips swayed when ballads played, while heads rocked back and forth, with hands waving in the air, when the fast-paced, edgier songs were performed. The band made use of their various instruments and members as they partook in solos for each instrumentalist in the seven-piece band.

The crowd went wild, especially when Rob Ingraham played a saxophone solo. Appreciation for Michael Girardot’s trumpet solo followed immediately, but the star of the evening was definitely David Shaw’s recently grown out hair, as one fan gladly pointed out.

“His hair grew,” said Jackie Williams, a long-term fan of the band who has seen them in Syracuse before. “That was the best part.”

The lead singer, David Shaw, took great effort into making sure the audience was responsive, with multiple sing-alongs, clapping sessions, and multiple moments when he got down from the stage and walked amongst the audience.

This also included a moment when he simply asked everyone to jump along with him, and everyone obliged. The band was cheered on by constant whistles and howls, as they very smoothly jumped from song to song.

The opening act for The Revivalists was British blues rock band The Temperance Movement, who were as well received by the audience as the headliners. While initially not as attentive to what the Temperance Movement had to offer, towards the end of their set, the crowd was howling and whistling.

The spirit of the show was carried into the night outside as a man waiting outside the theatre whipped out his guitar and, joined by a concertgoer on vocals, serenaded the crowd as they waited for their cabs, or tried to remember where they had parked their cars.

Published on September 14, 2016 at 2:08 am

Contact Malavika: mnrandiv@syr.edu