It was peculiar to enter Majestic’s realm without the all too familiar scent of marijuana meeting you at the door.
Instead, a mist of PBR burps and cheap cologne greeted the late attendees to Wild Child. The audience couldn’t really be clumped into one group — some under 18, some 20 something hipsters and possibly a few University of Wisconsin professors found themselves in the mix. The diverse crowd mirrored the night’s style of music.
Opener Elliot Moss began on a noticeably different frequency than his Wild Child counterparts, with vocals probably best described as a hungover male groaning for someone to make him food on a Sunday morning.
Moss, who bridged the darker, jazzier and synth heavy space somewhere between alternative and electronic music, seemed to lack spark, despite hitting his notes flawlessly. But with a drummer providing the energy, the New York singer-songwriter did manage to build up anticipation for the headliners as the tempo of the last song quickened.
Then came Wild Child.
Some bands, in an attempt to do too much, end up performing only a handful of their songs to perfection. Wild Child is not one of those bands. As they transitioned between Southern Alternative and quieter Indie Pop, their quality and strong emotions never ceased.
The Austin, Texas band features seven members, leading to a combination of violin, baritone ukulele, keyboard, cello, drums, bass, trumpet and harmonica. Some songs flirt with folk, while some push the boundaries of alternative, nearing rock. The two vocalists, Kelsey Wilson and Alexander Beggins, met while supporting a larger act on tour. They had both recently gotten out of relationships, using their music as a means to explore their experiences.
Though the audience largely consisted of couples, they still got down to the group’s breakup music. Couples and singles alike sang along with Kelsey as she urged listeners to “forget about stupid fights,” and even shed some tears along the way.
But the concert as a whole wasn’t a downer. Despite some displays of strong emotion and melancholic themes in their music, the most impressive quality of the night was the band’s ability to keep the audience smiling and singing along.
During their most popular songs, such as “Pillow Talk” and “Crazy Bird,” the crowd was expectedly energetic. But even during their (clearly) lesser known songs, the band had everyone clapping, singing along or at least swaying heavily to the beat. Kelsey charged them up with screams of “Hell yeah!” and requests of confirmation that everyone was having a great time.
Wild Child proved they are a band that really cares about their fans. The co-lead singer and violinist Kelsey came out onto the stage during the transition period to paint fans’ faces with their signature design. The band repeatedly declared the crowd was the motivation behind everything they do. It was refreshing to see a band more concerned with pleasing their audience than making themselves look cool.
Though describing the crowd as “Wild” would hardly be accurate, smiles adorned the faces of nearly every fan leaving Majestic. The indie powerhouse delivered beautiful music to an eager crowd, rightfully proving they deserve a place in the competitive music world.
