Music nerds/aficionados/geeks rejoiced throughout Grammy-nominated Cory Wong’s 105-minute vibrant set at The Pageant Tuesday night. The crowd slowly filled in nicely by the time Wong and his crew of merry musicians — all decked out in matching blue jumpsuits (including special guest guitarist Mark Lettieri) — took to the brightly lit stage at 9:15 p.m.
The first night of the tour, that kicked off in St. Louis, was nothing short of spectacular. From the boundless energy and stylings of Wong to Yohannes Tona popping, slapping and thumping his bass guitar, to the grooving, in-sync brass section and the mesmerizing drumming of Petar Janjic, and more, this is a concert not to be missed.
The band melded jazz, funk, and rock and seamlessly flowed from one standard to the next. They brought out opener Couch’s lead vocalist, Tema Siegel for two songs including “Ain’t it Fun” by Paramore, which Wong prefaced by saying they’d never performed it before. They covered Lettieri’s (who’s on loan from Snarky Puppy and Fearless Flyers) groovin’ “Tidal Tail” and the deeper “Gigantactis.”
Boston-based Couch opened with 40 minutes of expressive horns, warm vocals, and bubbling synths. During their St. Louis debut, they performed a cover of Justin Bieber’s “Sorry,” a fun rendition of “Conjunction Junction” (yes, the Schoolhouse Rock song) and “(I Wanted) Summer With You,” among others.
The band brought their own funk-rock sound that was a perfect warm-up for Cory Wong.
If you simply can’t catch Cory Wong on this 21-day, 20-city tour, you can see the show in its entirety on YouTube here but nothing beats seeing them in person and feeling the passion of the musicians and the spirit of the music rise from the souls of your feet and groove throughout your body.
See all photos from this dynamic night here https://bit.ly/CWong24cz
In my work life, I help nonprofits and small businesses with media and public relations. In my what I love to do life, you can typically find me photographing either wild horses or concerts.
