Fox Theater (Oakland, CA)
03/24/23
The debut album which changed the lives of the musicians involved, An Awesome Wave, had its 10-year anniversary late May last year. The Mercury award-winning record was a huge success for the band, and alt-J celebrated its anniversary last May with a global concert broadcast, a podcast looking back on the album, and a special show in London where they played the album in its entirety. They extended the celebration to this year to bring An Awesome Wave to the States, playing a series of concerts that featured a live performance of the entire album from front to back. Originally slated to be just four shows in three cities, it was extended to be nine shows across five cities. The sould-out U.S. tour concluded with two nights at the Fox Theater in Oakland, CA.
As the trio – made up of lead singer and guitarist Joe Newman, keyboardist and vocalist Gus Unger-Hamilton, and drummer Thom Sonny Green – came out on stage for the final night of the tour, the anticipation in the crowd was palpable. The first part of the show was An Awesome Wave from start to finish – all 14 tracks were played in order. It was clear how beloved the album is for both the band and for the fans, transporting them right back to 2012.
The end of the last song from An Awesome Wave was met with extra loud cheering and applause, before alt-J launched into the second part of their show. For the rest of the night, they played songs from their later three studio albums, including their most recent album, The Dream, released early last year. The show was a dream for both OG and new alt-J fans alike, as they watched the trio on stage across three raised platforms performing their songs with perfect harmonies and accompanied by a dazzling light show.
