US Weekly perform on the Keep Stage at Sound On Sound Festival on November, 5 2016. Dave Creaney/AMERICAN-STATESMAN
From the local stages of small Austin bars and venues, US Weekly made their festival debut at Sound on Sound 2016 and couldn’t had been more thrilled about it.
The band took a leap in their career with this festival, never experiencing anything like this before.
“This is so much more professional,” guitarist Ryan Fitzgibbon said. “So I feel a little bit more nervous.”
They said they were so excited to be there that they actually showed up on time.
“We were here at 8:30 this morning, we were the only band here,” lead vocalist Christopher Nordahl said. “We actually followed the rules of the email.”
Scheduled at 2:20 p.m. on Saturday, the band played an early show, but were still able to attract a crowd they were proud of.
“People were there, and that’s all you can really ask for,” Nordahl said.
Nordahl and Fitzgibbon with the rest of the band — bassist Ryan Curtis and drums Kent Hale — took to the stage and addressed the crowd with a simple “hello crowd.”
Nordahl said being able to see everyone’s faces was something new to him.
“It’s weird not being on the same level as everyone else and feeling their body heat,” Nordahl said.
They started with the song “Christian Ideas,” giving the chilled atmosphere a somewhat beach-y vibe.
Nordahl entered the stage wearing a pink button-down with the words “Big Service” in cursive on the back. As they transitioned from song to song, so did each button on Nordahl’s shirt as he loosened the blouse.
By the time they got to their eighth song out of 10, the shirt was completely off and chest hair was on. When asked if this was always a part of the routine, Nordahl said, “It has been known to happen.”
Nordahl was not afraid to show the crowd his all and didn’t shy away from giving the audience some memorable dance moves to take away. Nordahl said they are inspired from a mixture of a not-so-sober Madonna and David Byrne.
“I don’t think about it, I just do it,” Nordahl said.
The band is in the process of recording their first EP through Night Moves Records and is expected to release it next spring.
