Live Music: ARIZONA
The Foundry at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, PA
By Gabby Cabacab
Along the edge of the Delaware River lies Fishtown, the art, music, and culinary district of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In this well-known hotspot for upcoming artists is an old metal factory that was converted into the music venue we now know as The Fillmore. The Fillmore is comprised of two floors, the top being The Foundry which holds a smaller capacity of around 400 people compared to its downstairs counterpart. While it may come off as a small club, on the night of October 11, 2017, it gave off an exciting energy thanks to Flor and ARIZONA selling out the whole venue.
With dim, colorful lights, the 4 members of Flor got on stage and open up with the second song off of their debut album, come out. you’re hiding, “Warm Blood”. Although cramped, the boys still put on a spectacular and energetic performance, with smiles on their faces throughout their whole set. Jokes were thrown in between songs as instruments were handed back and forth making sure to keep the audience laughing. In the middle of their set, they surprised the crowd with a beautiful acoustic cover of Coldplay’s “Yellow”. Ending with the crowd favorite “Hold On”, Flor brought an excellent amount of energy to an already excited venue which was a perfect lead up to ARIZONA’s performance.
The lights shut down and the venue began to play the ever-so popular “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey. By the end of the song, lights began to flash in tune, hinting that this was definitely the band’s plan all along. The moment the song ended, the New Jersey trio, ARIZONA, arrived and opened up their set with the powerful “Annie”. With mind-bending visuals in the background, combined with the high-energy of lead singer, Zach Hannah, it was nearly impossible to take your eyes off of their performance. Playing popular songs off of their EPs such as “Electric Touch”, “Running”, and “Oceans Away”, the band also played brand new songs off of their debut album, Gallery, such as “Feed The Beast” and “Ain’t Gonna Leave”. Despite guitarist, Nate Esquite, missing due to personal matters he needed to attend, Zach and David Labuguen (Keys) put on a memorable show along with members of their incredible and talented tech team accompanying them on stage.
When I first saw ARIZONA live, they opened up for COIN in the Spring. I was especially excited knowing that they were from my neck of the woods in New Jersey, and when I saw them live I was taken away with their energy and the fact that they made me dance without even realizing it. Seeing them headline their first tour and how much they’ve grown as performers is heartwarming and exciting.
ARIZONA, with their powerful vocals, beautiful merge of guitar, synth, drums, and lighting visuals brought The Foundry all up on their feet dancing from beginning to end. So, if you haven’t seen them live, you better do that soon. And trust me, even if you claim that you “hate to dance”, you’ll end up doing it anyway.
Listen to ARIZONA here.
ARIZONA:
Flor:
