The Salt Shed was PACKED on April 22 as Cannons (Michelle Joy [vocals] and Ryan Clapham [guitar], as well as bassist Jade Fink and drummer Cliff Sarcona, who is filling in for Paul Davis while he takes care of a health issue) and Bob Moses (Tom Howie and Jimmy Vallance, along with touring musicians Julio Tavarez and Joe Zizzo) brought their co-headlining tour to Chicago.
With dreamy atmospheres, intoxicating beats, and a pair of newish albums – Everything Glows for Cannons and BLINK for Bob Moses – these two artists proved to be a perfect combination for fans looking to get lost in a world of sweeping sounds. In fact, before introducing the song “Take Me to Tokyo,” Joy explained that the mission statement of sorts for Everything Glows revolves around the idea of returning to a place where music serves as a beautiful escape.
“The lyric of ‘Tokyo’ represents a place that we’ve created as a band, writing songs together, and this place that we’ve created for ourselves originally is somewhere that we could always escape to when life got tough. Just a place to get out the feelings and emotions that we needed to,” she explained. “We’ve created this space that has saved us many times over again and it brings us a lot of peace and joy and happiness. We wanted to share that space with you with this album.”
Everything Glows provided the starting point for some of the best moments of the set. Clapham used the hypnotic “These Nights” to share an especially tasty guitar solo while “I Get Weak” featured all of the instrumentation swirling in and out of the spotlight in a disco-esque jam. Joy’s vocals were ethereal throughout the night and Sarcona was at his most intricate on “Purple Sun,” which also featured a commanding bass presence from Fink.
Elsewhere, “Heartbeat Highway” transported everyone to synth-pop heaven and “Fire for You” set the stage for the set’s biggest sing-along. “Loving You,” “Bright Lights,” and “Up All Night” were further highlights of Cannons’s performance.
Bob Moses closed out the show with a collection of magnetic music of their own, seamlessly flowing one song into the next at the top of the set. “Time of Your Life,” “Waiting on the World,” and “Love Brand New” were among the fan favorites that sounded better than ever when being played on The Salt Shed Stage.
Earlier in the evening, Oxis shared her gorgeous vocals and fish-themed songs – as well as a captivating cover of The Killers’s “Mr. Brightside” – with the crowd. From start to finish, the entire show was nothing short of exquisite.
Cannons and Bob Moses’s co-headlining tour continues through the end of the month with limited dates taking place in May and July. Check out photos from their stop at The Salt Shed below and head over to Cannonstheband.com for more information.
(Photos by Laurie Fanelli)
