Ev’s last, long, overdue article of 2019

When I began writing for Juniper Magazine, I had a lot of goals in mind. I always do - I wanted to write more about the things that I love: music, people, and the culture that brings them all together. I wanted to write about shows that I went to as a way of taking a moment to reflect. I wanted to do so in a prompt manner so that I could get the word out fast, but so far that has been the hardest part. Per the title, this article is about the last show I went to in 2019 for Juniper Magazine. This show is one that I was really grateful to have been press listed for, one that allowed me to see an old friend and meet a new one, and one that I had been building excitement for.

You see… the thing about music, and the thing about going to shows, is it allows to you lose your body and mind in the energy. I don’t know about you… but when this happens to me (which it does A LOT)…

I do some weird things, or I guess maybe… you could call them dance moves. I find myself thinking about everything besides what my body is actually doing. It just kinda flows to the music, and I fall victim to whatever the artist has prepared for me and the audience in that moment for that evening.

Gramatik and Opiou has quite the evening in store for me.

Now I’d like to take a few minutes to tell you about that evening and urge you to check out these artists and what they have in store for you, should you decide to take a listen to them in 2020.

The show was held at the Riviera Theater on November 16th, many red line train stops away, but a beautiful venue and one that’s always worth the journey.

That night… I ventured to the show alone, with a DEEP love for the opener, Opiou, and a body ready to dance the night away in motion.

Shortly after arriving I found my friend Alex who I had previously connected with through my work with DePaul’s Music Business Organization. It was an ironic evening, as me and Alex both had planned to hang earlier in the week, only to realized we would both be free at the same place, at the same time, on Saturday at the Gramatik show - the perfect circumstance to reunite and catch up.

After we met up, We found a place on the balcony, and immediately I knew I had underestimated the night. Opiou was even more phenomenal than I had anticipated and gave an excellent performance.

Prior to this, I had previously caught the tail end of his set at Electric Forest 2019 along with his 2019 Lollapalooza set so you could say I was prepared to boogie… but damn, did I do that!

I love his songs and the grooves they brought to the venue and crowd. During his performance I scrabbled the following in my notes, and to this day I think about it often.

“When the music dies down… in between drops, get as loud as you can! and put in as much energy into the world as you can! so that all of it can all be shot out right back at you.”

During the performance Opiuo made just this happen, conducting claps, screams, and rhythm from the crowd.

It continued on with Gramatik who I was not the most excited to see - in my past experiences at Gramatik’s sets, I have found myself wishing they would just play classics like “Just Jammin” and “Hit that Jive”. Instead, during that night’s performance, I found myself grooving along to the set, fully in the moment and not waiting for a thing.

Gramatik set was full of brass and jam beats. the ones that really drive the music’s path and that I could tell from the crowd, brings people together (who also appreciate the same thing… live music.)

To sum up, the crowd flourished with hippies of all varieties moving along the music, minding their business, and having fun along their fellow attendees.

In 2019 I sought out to better capture these moments, to live my experiences, and appreciate things like live music, by writing about them afterwards. While it seems, I am never content with the outcome of my doing so, I feel humbled to be given a platform and opportunities this year to do just that.

Thank you Gramatik, Opiou, and Juniper Magazine for an awesome evening on the 16th and an amazing way to write out 2019. Check out Gramatik out HERE and Opiuo out HERE and stay tuned for more articles (in a timely manner) in 2020. The words have only begun, and I invite you to read.