Jupiter One's Universal Appeal

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Regina Spektor can undoubtedly be credited for her sold-out show with Brooklyn's Jupiter One at Radio City Music Hall last night, but her opening act nevertheless left an impression on those who arrived early enough. From the braces-bearing pre-teen girls accompanied by their parents to the legitimate adult fan base, the audience was engrossed by the boys' pop-rock, synth-laden songs. Granted, I was sitting four rows from the front and was probably surrounded by besties of the band-- but the crowd’s solid applause was a good indication that Jupiter One can hold their own among big names like Spektor's.

The band played a six-song set, opening with “Volcano,” a track plucked from their recently released record, Sunshower. And though people were still filing in as they played, the quintet hardly seemed distracted. Lead singer K Ishibashi strummed furiously on his hot red and white guitar, and drummer Dave Heilman resembled a spastic gorilla, pounding away at his set, veins popping. Bassist Pat Dougherty looked a little stiff, but we can hardly blame him. After all, this performance in the palatial Music Hall included balcony (upon balcony) seating and dual JumboTron projection of their every move. They followed with “Countdown,” the sole song they performed from their self-titled debut.

But the larger venue had its benefits: I knew Isihibashi had an impressively deep falsetto, but within this setting his vocals reverberated beautifully. Also awesome? When they dove into a pretty instrumental part, Ishibashi ditched his guitar and picked up his violin. On point and passionate, his versatility (did I mention he also manned the keyboard?) was rivaled only moderately by bandmate Zac Colwell, the flannel-clad second guitarist, backup vocalist, and synth commander. This guy also met Ishibashi’s violin and raised him a flute. Yep, the evening effervesced with multi-instrumentalists.

Photos: Pearse Daly