A Rocket To The Moon

By Claire White

As the tension built up in the venue, you could tell that the crowd were eager for A Rocket To The Moon’s first time in Glasgow. There was an air of excitement and everyone was highly anticipating the bands arrival. As the lights dimmed and the intro began, the crowd at the Garage on May 24th were already cheering for the American quartet.

The band launched into track ‘Give A Damn’ from the band’s full-length debut album ‘On Your Side’. Immediately, the crowd were singing and jumping along screaming the lyrics at the top of their voices and it was evident from the band’s beaming smiles that the excitement was mutual.

It had only taken a few chords for the Glasgow crowd to anticipate the next track, ‘She’s Killing Me’, one excited audience member exclaiming ‘I love you!’ before the band had a chance to begin. The crowd were already captivated by the long-awaited appearance of the band in the UK and it is safe to say that they certainly did not disappoint from the moment that they stepped on-stage.

As the band lowered the momentum of the gig breaking into an acoustic section, front-man Nick Santino expressed his appreciation to the Glasgow crowd, who were more than eager to express their excitement back. In most gigs, the slower section is one that the crowd project much less energy and more singing, yet it definitely can be said that the crowd were giving both just as much attention, swaying along and singing their hearts out to popular track ‘Baby Blue Eyes’.

With another popular song ‘Dakota’ this allowed the band to introduce those audience members who were not familiar with the band, which there weren’t many, to get involved. Front-man Nick Santino explained he would teach them ‘Sesame Street style’ to sing-along with the catchy section “Ba da ba ba ba da ba ba ba da ba ba”. The crowd were eager to get involved and this time even the minority who previously were not moving, where swaying along singing back to the band.

Another slower track with an acoustic beginning showcasing the bands musical talent, was ‘Like We Used To’ as Nick dedicated the track to a girl in the audience jealousy filled the air, but this was soon forgotten as soon as Nick’s powerful vocals accompanied by back-up vocalists Justin Richards and Eric Havlorsen filled the room and the crowd were swaying their arms in the air, as a sea of camera lights filled the venue.

With the bands last song ‘Mr Right’ the energy was picked up once again and the crowd were dancing along, the band and the crowd as enthusiastic as each other. All tracks performed sounded exactly live as they do recorded, so fans of the bands recorded material would not be disappointed catching the band live.

The crowds reception to the band easily proved that if A Rocket To The Moon were to return to Glasgow, it would be a highly anticipated return. It also seems it would be highly appreciated for the band to do a headline tour, as the crowd seemed disheartened once the band left the stage. Definitely an appearance worth the wait.