On Wednesday November 2nd, Eric Hutchinson ended his tour and started his indefinite break with an incredible show at 9:30 Club. Playing off of the hometown crowd, Eric Hutchinson played almost two hours of non-stop pop magic.
From the moment Hutchinson walked on stage in a grey suit and sneakers, he brought an infectious high energy aura that inspired the crowd to get involved and clap along with him, even though he was standing behind a piano. He got the crowd to bounce and sway along with him. The entirety of the show, the crowd was on his side and was ready to have a good time.
The vibe of the show was completely fluid. The show started with a very reggae pop-vibe, transitioned to a jazz vibe, then a blues vibe, and lastly a pop-rock vibe.
Hutchinson played all of his hits, and songs from his entire repertoire – from fan favorites such as “Watching You Watch Him,” and “Ok, It’s Alright With Me” to newer songs like “Lost in Paradise.”
Throughout the show, Hutchinson’s charisma was undeniable. His pre-song commentary was the highlight of the show.
To introduce the “song of his career,” Hutchinson talked about how this song is for those nights when you are wearing one croc and one flip flop as you drive to target for “generic aspirin” but you need to pull the car over “because you know what’s next…the ugly cry.”
When introducing his song “Shine on Me,” Hutchinson thanked the 9:30 Club for being so supportive of his career. He also talked about how he wrote this song while “looking for divine inspiration…I wrote it after I got super high in Amsterdam…it was a spiritual feeling.”
Hutchinson was a big believer in vocal and guitar riffs, as evidenced throughout the show. Before going into “You Better Believe Me” Hutchinson faced off to his bandmate’s guitar prowess- even versus Hutchinson’s powerhouse falsetto…the guitar one.
The set ended with a high power version of Hutchinson’s smash hit “Rock & Roll.” With flashing lights and heavy guitars and vocals, Hutchison left the stage to cheers of one more song.
For the encore, Hutchinson and his band The Believers came out into the crowd for an acoustic and unplugged version of “Forget About Joni.” The entire crowd fell silent as Hutchinson belted the lyrics and his lyrical sincerity washed over the crowd.
In his own words, Eric Hutchinson’s concert was a “finely tuned, artistic show.” He talked about how he did shows with no people and how that wasn’t fun, but for his final show for a while the club was packed, and everyone left hoping Hutchinson’s break is short.
Photo Credit: Debi Del Grande, One Nation
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