Indie rock collective, flipturn, put on a captivating performance at Boston’s Paradise Rock Club on November 6th. From start to finish the band's performance was enthralling and dazzling leaving the crowd absolutely electric and constantly engaged.
flipturn consists of Dillon Basse (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), Tristan Duncan (lead guitar), Madeline Jarman (bass), Mitch Fountain (synth), and Devon VonBalson (drums). The band is currently touring their debut album “Shadowglow,” which explores, love, loss and personal growth. The five person collective have been performing together since 2016 when the band formed in Fernandina beach, Florida and that is entirely evident in the way the band ebb and flow together whilst performing.
All five members had great energy whilst performing. Whether that was Basse and Jarman jumping around and playing to one another or Duncan and Fountain performing in perfect synchronization or VonBalson and Jarman mirroring one another and communicating between songs. One of the best aspects of the show was how genuinely happy the band was to be up on stage. Multiple times throughout the night you could catch Duncan smiling to himself as he interacted with the crowd singing along or Basse mouthing “this is crazy” to his fellow bandmates as the crowd sang the lyrics of “August” and “Chicago”, particularly loudly, back to him.
The Boston show was Dillon Basse’s home town show, he candidly shared with the crowd that he was thrilled to be back and he loved seeing familiar faces, as friends and family had seemingly packed the balcony of Paradise Rock Club. Basse also very humbly shared how excited he was to be headlining to their largest crowd so far. As every member nodded along through this thanks they each seemed genuinely grateful and awestruck by the overwhelming positive response from the crowd.
Some of the best moments of the performance was watching the band as well as the audience members feel the music. You would witness every band member moving in perfect synchronization as they all bopped their heads to the beat or performed mirroring movements whilst they played in unison. The audience perfectly mirrored their actions too, when Basse and Jarman began to jump so did the crowd or when VonBalson would move his body to the beat the entire crowd would move with him. It felt like watching a finely tuned machine, you simply could not look away. It was hypnotizing.
flipturn at Paradise Rock Club in Boston, MA
11•06•22 | By Isabel Ingersoll @isabelingersoll
From start to finish, flipturn was solidified as an indie rock staple. Everything from their groovy guitar solos, gritty and belting vocal performance and catchy hooks makes them an instant classic in my eyes. They had a great ability to showcase their music in an accessible way to the crowd– the audience came for a rock show and that's exactly what they got. The band was able to keep the energy up throughout their entire 19 track setlist. Songs like “Hippies” ,which is a slower ballad from their EP Citrona, was sped up to become a surf rock-esq song that fans could scream “You’re such a fucking hippie” to. Rather than speeding up and slowing down throughout the set the band kept high energy throughout, changing many of the studio recording’s tempos to match the absolutely electric energy that was coursing through the crowd.
Rock Club in Boston, MA 11•06•22 | By Isabel Ingersoll @isabelingersoll
One of the most fun moments of the night was during the encore when the band came out, guns blazing, playing their most popular track “August.” When the band emerged for the encore the crowd collectively released a breath they had been holding as I heard a handful of people murmuring “Where was August?” before the encore. “August” truly didn't disappoint. The moment the lonesome and iconic fingerpicking pattern rang out from Duncan’s guitar the crowd went wild. This version of “August” was faster paced and heavier on drums, rather than the dreamy and reminiscent vocals Basse performs on the studio recording, “August” live consisted of shouting and belting vocals that left the crowd screaming “August, honey, you were mine” back at him.
The closing song of the encore “Cold” was the perfect way to round out the night. With a massive guitar solo toward the end of the song gave opening act, The Brazen Youth, an opportunity to join flipturn on stage as they laughed, danced and sang together. Both bands gracing the stage and truly having the time of their lives was a complete display of joy and enthusiasm which only encouraged the crowd to begin performing similar antics, jumping and dancing with one another. It was a sweet and intimate moment that gave the audience a beautiful glimpse into the dynamics of the band and let us into their world. There’s something really special about witnessing a beautiful musical performance, good crowd interactions and dynamic stage presence in a small venue before a band starts playing larger ones. I guarantee in a year's time flipturn will be playing larger venues and creating that same vibrant and exhilarating environment they created at Paradise Rock Club.
Published via Returner Magazine
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