between friends WOW’s the House of Blues

^{Article by Madison Luongo, photos by Finley Harrison}

On the warm night of Wednesday, October 8th, the inside House of Blues theater was buzzing with excitement, waiting patiently for indie duo between friends to take the stage. The group, consisting of siblings Brandon and Savannah Hudson, is currently embarking on the WOW! Tour, promoting their most recently released album of the same name.

The duo had alternative artist VALÉ perform as their opening act. With her upbeat songs and strong stage presence, VALÉ was a great start to the night. In addition to her energetic music, the artist was also very interactive with the crowd, even instructing them on how to sing one of her songs, “lo tengo mal.” Despite VALÉ’s short stage time, the singer left a strong presence with the audience, only making them more excited for what else the night had in store for them.

Soon after VALÉ’s departure, between friends took the stage. While the duo had a very simple stage setup, simply two microphone stands, their screen visuals took the concert experience to another level, starting with the animation introducing them to the stage consisting of “WOW!” flashing over and over again in different fonts. The band opened with “You & Me Time,” the opening track to their newest album. The 20-song setlist consisted primarily of tracks from WOW! which served as a significant genre-shift for the Hudson siblings, stepping from their traditional sound of bedroom pop to alternative with a more electronic-focused influence. Despite the setlist focusing on WOW!, between friends made sure to play their most notable tracks from past albums– this naturally included “affection,” the band’s most popular song. While the enthusiasm of the crowd was strong the entire performance, “affection” brought a new energy to the House of Blues, connecting the most casual to the most hardcore of between friends fans in the performance of this iconic song. 

After two more songs and a brief encore featuring “DJ,” the duo left the stage and fans began to disperse, with nothing left but the memory of this incredible performance.