Seeing Jukebox the Ghost live is kind of like going to see Harry Connick Jr. or some other lounge act, except with more onstage beer drinking, better tunes and less of the over-50 set present–although there was one crazy looking old guy with a bald head and a beer belly front and center who inexplicably knew all the words to every song.

Even though singer and keyboarder Ben Thornewell claimed that on this particular night they had talked less during the show than any one before that, their still-frequent conversational interludes showed that their colloquial breeziness is a signature piece of their band’s live style. In between performing the poppy, bouncy piano-driven songs from both of their albums, they took the time to joke with the audience about a number of matters, from the aforementioned big crazy old guy in the audience, to the amount of beers they had already had that night, to the difference between marking an address on a Brooklyn-bound and a Manhattan-bound letter. And while it’s kind of difficult for me to describe the nuances contained in different power pop acts, which so often sound delightfully similar, Jukebox the Ghost surely has enough raw talent to deserve a devoted fan base. Thornewell, especially, has a really fun stage presence, rolling out long impressive lines of tinkling notes on his keyboard as though it’s nothing special while chatting with the people standing below. Having the ability to play skillfully while maintaining a nonchalant energy is not as simple as it looks, and so it was cool to see Jukebox the Ghost spending their time onstage as though they were playing at a party for close friends while still sounding sharp.

Towards the end of the set members of opening bands Drink Up Buttercup and Via Audio came onstage to help out with the music while some fans hopped up to dance onstage, making the already-present feeling of camaraderie continue to swell to a high point that was punctuated by the closing song–a cover of Donna Lewis’s “I Love You Always Forever.” Combined with the overall spirit of friendliness contained in the venue and an audience who obviously loved and memorized all of the words to the band’s first album, the Jukebox the Ghost show was, in short, great fun!

Photos by G. Alan Busch Jr.

Share and Enjoy

•