BØRNS (photo: Ian Young)
On Sunday, November 22 BØRNS entranced a sold out crowd at The Independent. Garrett Borns, aka BØRNS, already has a widely agreed “instant classic” after only one album that was released last month. Before the album was even released, this show was sold out. The moment I had heard about the show, it had already been sold out for months. With that being said, I came into that venue expecting to fall in love, and I did.
Before I went to the show, I had experienced a weird long day. From working 8 hours at my day job, to art galleries, to getting harassed over pizza. I was out of it, and just wanting to enjoy the music the best I could. I gave my mind to the music, and that’s all I needed in the moment.
The opening band was Avid Dancer from LA. Throughout their set the thee Independent was quickly becoming wall-to-wall packed. Instead of people just walking into the venue and finding a good spot, they were dancing into the venue. The moment they stepped inside they couldn’t stand still, which is an overall great visual of how addicting Avid Dancer’s music is. Their whole set was like a lively dream. The one song that really stuck in my memory were “All Your Words Are Gone”, which is a bittersweet ballad that perfectly described what I was trying to do at the show.
When BØRNS began, the venue was packed, and thanks to Avid Dancer the fans were wide awake and loudly preparing to enjoy themselves even more. The dopamine in our minds was on high and it only got higher as BØRNS went on to mystify us. They introduced their songs, by dedicating each to specific people. “Overnight Sensation” was dedicated to the UFOs, the aliens, and the those the crowd that weren’t from this world, which made sense because that’s how the song made you feel. Even from the balcony seats, I felt out of my body, I was not standing, I was floating along with the music and the crowd. I was not on anything other than the music, and one beer that I had before the music even began. I could see I was not the only one feeling like this. The crowd was swaying non-stop, and in moments dancing like crazy and singing along at the top of their lungs. “American Money” was dedicated to the people of the night, the strippers, and the party goers. They ended their set with the so called “instant classic” (according to Taylor Swift), “Electric Love.” I have never openly agreed to anything Taylor Swift has ever said, but I will agree to what she had to say about that song. Everyone was singing along. There were moments the crowd was the one performing. I was even singing along loudly and unafraid. That’s what BØRNS did to everyone in that crowd, made us loud and unafraid. Of course, the crowd did not let it end like that, they were so up on dopamine that they needed an encore, and they got it. BØRNS returned to sing two more songs, one being a cover of “Bennie and the Jets” by Elton John.
If I could successfully rate shows by how many phones were in the air I would give this show 3 phones out of 5. Meaning, that it was one of those shows that people wanted to document, they wanted to remember it, they wanted to tell all their friends, but they also wanted to enjoy themselves. Dropping their phones when their favorite part of their favorite musicians songs came on, just so they could actually enjoy themselves in the moment.
