REVIEW: J Roddy Walston and the Business, Post Animal 01/26 @ Royale
Post Animal opened up for J Roddy Walston and the Business at the Royale on Friday night. It was an early show, with Post Animal starting at 7 p.m. and J. Roddy Walston at 8 p.m. Most of the crowd arrived nearing the end of Post Animal’s set, which was a real shame for them because they missed out on the real stars of the show. They are a five-piece band, consisting of bassist and singer Dalton Allison, Jake Hirshland on guitar and keys, Wes Toledo on drums, and both Javi Reyes and Matt Williams on guitar. Occasionally, Stranger Things star Joe Keery also appears on guitar, because you can never have enough guitars.
Post Animal’s sound is reminiscent of early Tame Impala with a bit of Led Zeppelin mixed in, a.k.a a total jam. They played songs from their first and only album so far, Post Animal Perform the Most Curious Water Activities, notably “When I Get Home,” “Special Moment,” “Alabaster,” and fan favorite, “Hoverin’ All Night.” Everybody in the crowd, at that time really only around 30 college students, soaked up the bass-heavy trip of a set by dancing their faces off. The vibe of the whole show could’ve been a lot more fun if this continued, but as Post Animal stepped off stage the 29 and up crowd stepped in, and normally this wouldn’t have been an issue, but it seemed like they really couldn’t stand the sight of young people enjoying themselves and dancing like no tomorrow. This transition really felt like a shift in the night’s mood, and a shift in the quality of music.
J Roddy Walston and the Business consists of J Roddy Walston himself on vocals, piano, and guitar, with members Billy Gordon on lead guitar, bassist Logan Davis, and drummer Steven Colmus. When the headliner started playing their first few songs, it was obvious that their fanbase haven’t heard much rock music besides maybe a few classics. The band’s sound was a blues-based classic rock that seemed to recycle aspects of every classic rock band, ever. It was enjoyable at first, with standout songs like “Don’t Break the Needle,” and “Marigold,” but after a while it all started to blend into one cliche that their audience played out to the fullest. It’s like if Kings of Leon suddenly lost all their drive and energy to create music.
Their encore, consisting of “Sweat Shock,” “You Know Me Better,” and “Heavy Bells,” continued in this way, but with a lot more audience sing-along.
The overall problem of the show’s atmosphere was more so the decision to have a band like Post Animal playing with what seems like their complete opposite, and to start off the show on higher energy than it was left with.
-Brittany Moura