Alt/indie powerhouse alt-J visited the newly designed outdoor venue Champion’s Square in New Orleans last night to bring a spectacular performance. Situated in the shadow of the Superdome, Bold Sphere Music’s new outdoor festival space has everything to offer: a state of the art sound system, brilliant light display, tons of room to dance, and enough food and drink vendors to comfortably serve 8,000 patrons. With all of that in place, the plaza is a perfect spot to host popular acts that usually will not fit into the smaller venues in various New Orleans neighborhoods.
Hailing from Leeds, UK, alt-J provided an amazingly soothing yet energetic soundscape for their New Orleans fans. Comprised of Jon Newman on guitar and lead vocals, Gus Under-Hamilton on keyboards, Thomas Green on drums, and newly recruited Cameron Knight to replace Gwil Sainsbury on guitar and bass, the band tackled songs from their career-spanning catalogue. Newer fans could latch onto their more recent material while the band’s older, core audience sang along to hits like “Something Good”, “Dissolve Me”, and “Matilda” from their 2012 debut An Awesome Wave. alt-J’s live performance exceeds the quality of their albums, taking the core vibes, performing their instruments brilliantly, and adding an improvisational live twist to each song. Fans and newcomers alike were left in admiration as they watched and listened to alt-J light up the Big Easy.
The opening act was no disappointment either. San Fermin, led by Brooklyn songwriter and composer Ellis Ludwig-Leone, delivered a wildly diverse performance, with sax player Stephen Chen and trumpeter John Brandon complimenting the band with a perfectly New Orleans-style brass sound.
As alt-J bade their audience farewell with their most popular hit, “Breezeblocks”, emotions ran wild. With a bittersweet goodbye, alt-J left the stage and also a lasting impression on the New Orleans community.
Photos by Brandon Xuereb. Full gallery:
