Last Thursday was no ordinary night. Terminal West was packed with young art appreciators. Everyone was excited with anticipation as someone very special was supposed to come on stage any minute.
The crowd was no ordinary crowd either. As some may say, the crowd fits the artist. Some people were dressed up (which this may not come as a surprise to you because Halloween is just around the corner), and some brought pineapples to the show. Not to eat those. Not to throw those. But to lift it up in the air and fire up the crowd on every single bit. That definitely did make the show even more interesting than it already was.
Moon Hooch was who the crowd so eagerly waited for. Once the guys from the band stepped on the stage, the audience went wild. Headbanging, jumps, cheerful claps and screams – all of that contributed to the show and made the band feel welcome.
You may not have heard about Moon Hooch before, but this is your chance. These guys are insanely talented and energetic. They play various kinds of woodwind instruments (but mainly saxes) and drums, dance, and sing all pretty much at the same time.
If there ever was the longest song in this world, it is probably the song that played that night. In fact, these were separate pieces and themes, but they were all connected with a harmony that repeated throughout the whole set, which made it feel like one narrative.
Moon Hooch is the band that uses their instruments to not only play music but also to tell a story, to speak up. They use musical sounds to imitate human emotions and speech sounds. One can identify a variety of moods in just one simple line. They even replied to the crowd as the people shouted out the lines and asked for more music.
Moon Hooch are simple guys that started off playing in subways and are now a quite well-known band of talented musicians. They concentrate on positive thinking and positive music. A lot of their music philosophy comes from the Indian philosophy, commitment to existentialism and consciousness plays an essential role in what these guys do.
The atmosphere felt ecstatic to an extent.
If you have not yet had a chance to listen to what these guys have to say through their music, check them out on Spotify. Maybe you can still snatch a ticket or two.
Written, and all photos, by Alisa Malkova.
Catch Moon Hooch on tour now:
November 9 – Chatenay-Malabry, FR – Le Pediluve
November 10 – Beauvais, FR – La Maladrerie Saint Lazare
November 11 – Les Deux-Fays, FR – Salles Des Fetes
November 12 – Angers, FR – Le Jokers
November 14 – Manchester, UK – Band on the Wall
November 15 – Hull, UK – FRüIT
November 16 – London, UK – Under the Bridge
November 17 – Auxerre, FR – Le Silex
November 18 – St-Germain-En Laye, FR – LaClef Stgermain
November 29 – Ithaca, NY – The Haunt ^
November 30 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Ballroom ^
December 1 – Dayton, OH – Oddbody’s ^
December 2 – Covington, KY – Octave ^
December 6 – Utrecht, NL – De Helling
December 8-9 – Rennes, FR – Trans Musicales Festival
December 27 – Boston, MA – The Sinclair ^
December 28 – Portland, ME – Port City Music Hall ^
December 29 – Burlington, VT – Higher Ground ^
December 30 – Northampton, MA – Pearl Street Nightclub &
December 31 – Buffalo, NY – Buffalo Iron Works &
* Co-headline with Marco Benevento
+ w/ Jackson Whalan
^ w/ Gnomedad
& w/ Gnomedad and Honeycomb
