NeedToBreathe, Switchfoot, Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors at Cabooze Plaza, Minneapolis (24 July 2015)

Needtobreathe Tour Dates

Colony House is a Tennessee-based indie rock trio with Christian roots, as brothers Caleb Chapman (vocals) and Will Chapman (drums) are the sons of singer Stephen Curtis Chapman and were joined by guitarist Scott Mills, with bassist and keyboardist Parke Avery coming along for the tour.

Debut album When I Was Younger had just come out, with several songs having a pronounced, bigger sound, like lead single, ‘Silhouettes’.  The band didn’t have a lot of time with only a five-song set, but half of them stayed around to back Needtobreathe, during their own headlining performance.

The newer ‘American Beauty’ opened their nine-song set, with band favorite song, ‘Nothing but Trouble’ following.  “Ten years dancing to the music; eight years dancing with the girl I love” from ‘Shine Like Lightning was a love letter to his wife, and Needtobreathe’s  Bo Rinehart jumped onstage on mandolin to assist on ‘I’ve Got You’.

A fan-shouted request for single, ‘Tennessee’ from 2013’s Good Light, was heeded and inserted into the set list, as Holcomb mentioned it was unusual to hear a Minnesota request for a song about another state.

Another song inspired by his wife (I’m seeing a pattern here…) ‘What Would I Do Without You’ was sweet and mellow and the band ended with the call-and-response of the uplifting ‘Here We Go’. Holcomb mentioned from the stage that they’d already plotted their local return, back in town at the Varsity Theater next April 16^th, a nice relief after Tax Day.

Veteran San Diego band Switchfoot made the very most of their paltry 35 min. set;  currently between albums but eager to join this tour, with singer Jon Foreman taking a page from the “Bono Playbook” realizing the best way to engage the crowd, is to be a part of it.

In what was mostly a greatest-hits set (to no one’s objection), Foreman spent his time on top of speakers, in the middle of the crowd, and playing both sides of the stage, to make sure everyone was involved.  The band opened with hit, ‘Stars’ and a mid-set highlight was Foreman recognizing a face in the front crowd, who had tweeted he was coming all the way from Pakistan just to see the band.

Deciding to bring him on stage, the band gathered around a single mic for ‘Hello Hurricane’ as the traveling fan played part cheerleader/ part harmonizer, clearly having the best day of his life.  Like Holcomb and Needtobreathe, Switchfoot is a “band of brothers”, with Foreman’s brother, Tim, taking center stage on bass and keyboards.

Often referring to the audience as “friends”, Foreman announced “I have one more left in me!” before launching into ‘Dare You to Move’ before leaving the stage sooner than most people wanted.

Needtobreathe

South Carolina’s Needtobreathe continues to evolve as performers and grow its fan base, even since we recently last saw them live.  The band, led by brothers Bear and Bo Rinehart and bassist Seth Bolt is still in support of their latest; Rivers in the Wasteland (Atlantic/Curb/Word Records) and headlined this Tour de Compadres (“Tour of Friends”) with a 79 min. closing set, shortened from their usual time which resulted in a few abridged versions of songs and a compressed playlist.

The opener was ‘State I’m In’, from the newest album, a stomper that set a nice tone for the rest of their set. Needtobreathe, like the other bands on the bill, have some definite Christian leanings, but because of shortened set times and the number of acts playing, letting their music do the talking, leaving the listener free to interpret any lyrics as closely (or not at all) as they wanted.

‘Wasteland’ slowed the pace a bit, with its “god on my side” chorus prompting numerous in the crowd to raise hands and sing along.  Bear described ‘Devil’s Been Talkin’ as one of his favorite songs that brother Bo wrote, while a truncated ‘Feet Don’t Fail Me Now’ led quickly into the first parts of ‘O Carolina’.

‘Difference Maker’ seemed especially poignant to the mostly younger crowd, with many singing along word-for-word, with a buoyant ‘The Heart’ ending their main set.

A shortened ‘Brother’ first brought out Switchfoot’s Foreman to sing along, quickly followed by all of the opening acts, building into a climax complete with confetti cannons, that would have been a fine show ending,. But, the band decided instead to end with the quiet and contemplative ‘Washed by the Water’, done acoustically and with minimal instrumentation.

Crowd-wise, this was maybe the most respectable of the Cabooze Plaza crowd, with most there to actively listen to the music, sing a long, and be uplifted while having a good time.  Sounds like a night out with “friends” and “neighbors”? – Exactly.