Piano-rock trio Jukebox the Ghost, having first gained the attention of many Tufts students as the opening act for Ben Folds at a Tufts-exclusive Somerville Theatre show last semester, played a set of mostly new material to an enthusiastic and receptive audience at the Middle East Downstairs on Saturday.
The crowd, mostly unfamiliar with the unreleased material, bobbed and clapped along to the new tunes nevertheless, quickly picking up on the catchier hooks.
The band admitted to having had a bit of apprehension at predominantly Splaying songs that their fans wouldn't know. Drummer Jesse Kristin said before the show, "This will be our third show playing [songs from the upcoming album,] and we kind of feel like jerks doing it. I mean, we love the new stuff, and we've been getting good reactions from audiences so far, but I, for one, usually hate it when I go to see a band and they play all new stuff instead of the songs I know."
Pianist and vocalist Ben Thornewill expressed a bit more confidence. "The new stuff is high-enough energy that it's sort of immediate, and I think that'll make up for [the new songs] being unknown," he said.
Jukebox the Ghost faithfully delivered on its promise of energetic and compelling songs, so enthusiastically that Thornewill even broke a key on his piano during the show. New tunes, such as "Half Crazy," "The Stars" and "Schizophrenia," saw the band executing tight melodic runs and rhythmic breakdowns, while Thornewill and guitarist/vocalist Tommy Siegel harmonized flawlessly.
The band explored new sonic territory with synth-laden songs and guitar effects, but made sure to return to more familiar ground when playing its older tracks. Precise and impressive renditions of older favorites like "Hold It In," "Static" and "Victoria" kept the audience engaged and singing along — especially on the final refrains of "Good Day," the show's triumphant closer.
