Starbenders and The Struts
Irving Plaza // New York, New York // Oct. 8, 2021
Photos and review by Jess Williams
Last year, British rock band The Struts, released their latest album Strange Days and on October 8th, they brought their “Strange Days Are Over” tour to a sold out Irving Plaza in New York City. The line wrapped down the street and around the corner, as fans of all ages waited in anticipation for the venue doors to open.
Starbenders
As the clock struck 8pm, the doors opened and the crowd began to flow into the newly renovated staple New York venue. Kicking off the show was Atlanta based rock band, Starbenders. I’d never heard of this band before they took the stage that evening, but immediately I was entranced. This band looked straight out of the 1970’s and I was living for it! Lead vocalist, Kimi Shelter, captivated the crowd with her strong guitar riffs and effervescent personality. I found myself entranced by the energy of drummer, Emily Moon, as she slammed on the drums with her hair flying all over the place.
“Who came here with someone tonight?” Shelter asked and cheers erupted, beers lifting to the skies. “Who came here alone tonight?” Shelter asked and slightly less cheers erupted, but a good amount of people raised their drinks. “Who needs a friend? Well, you’ve got a friend in us”, Shelter said, before transitioning into their next song. Starbenders radiated such friendly and nice energy and their talents surely shined on stage that evening. The band played a lengthy 40 minute set and I can guarantee that they garnered a lot of new fans that evening as well. But now, it was time for the main event.
I stood in the photo pit and watched as the stage hands changed out the stage setup. A black sheet was taken off the stunning white drum set at the back of the stage and a Welsh flag was attached to the kit. Just in front of the drums, a white piano was rolled onto stage. Three microphones were then lined across the front of the stage and the venue went dark. Fans began screaming and cheering as the time had finally come for The Struts.
The Struts
The British rockers graced the stage and immediately dove into their joyous single “Primadonna Like Me”. I had previously seen The Struts once before at a music festival in New Jersey and their infectious high energy attitudes stuck with me ever since. Friday night’s show was no exception. Lead vocalist, Luke Spiller, bounced and danced across the stage, often pointing the microphone to the crowd and letting the crowd take over on vocals.
Fresh from his 10 day quarantine after testing positive for COVID, bassist Jed Elliot, was raring to go. He commanded the right side of the stage, connecting with fans, photographers and his fellow bandmates alike. During “Body Talks”, Jed pointed and winked to the fans in the front row, sending a good portion of them screaming and then immediately pointed and winked into my camera — which I’ll admit sent me screaming internally!
Throughout the entire 17 song setlist, the energy from the band never died. It’s been two months since I first returned to live music and there have been several instances where I’ve felt the rush of live music all over again, but let me tell you, nothing compared to the feeling I got inside Irving Plaza that evening. Live music is back and Thee Struts put on one hell of a show! So much energy, it’s infectious and it is impossible not to dance along to their songs. I cannot recommend enough that you catch your local date of “The Strange Days Are Over Tour” and have yourself a wonderful evening!
