Concert Review: The Brook & The Bluff

By: Sophia Bianco

A beautiful Tuesday in Columbia, MO led to a beautiful night of The Brook & The Bluff’s “Bluebeard Tour” at the Blue Note. From start to finish, the crowd never stopped swaying, every guitar solo topped the next, and each light onstage all the right beats.

Local indie band Elephant Foot had their debut at the Blue Note with a set that made everyone want to dance, from upcoming single “Dubious” to adored cover of “Just the Two of Us,” and all the way closing song ‘High Tide.’ These familiar faces were followed by the energetic Australian indie rock band Teenage Dads for their last set with the Bluebeard tour. Since the start of opening song “Sunburnt,” they did not disappoint, getting the crowd involved with lively dance moves, a cover of the widely-known ‘Video Killed the Radio Star,’ and fun sing-alongs in closing songs “Teddy” and “Hey Diego!”

As The Brook & The Bluff walked onstage with an array of flashing lights, anyone could tell they were in for a great night. The band was glad to be back for the second leg of the “Bluebeard Tour,” and boy, was the crowd glad too. The switch between each song was effortless, giving the audience a constant stream of music to appreciate. Every call was answered with an enthusiastic response, and before you know it the whole venue was doing the step-touch. Each time frontman Joseph Settine stepped away from the microphone, he broke into contagious dancing that made it impossible to stand still in the audience. The energy came through the crowd so strong that he had to stop in amazement at the halfway point of the show, “Columbia, what the hell? Thank you so much.” 

Towards the end of the show, the passion amped up with “Doobie Bronson” and never went back down. Fan-favorites were scattered throughout the set, but there wasn’t a single soul not singing along as “Halfway Up” played before the encore. The Brook & The Bluff finished strong with “Lonesome,” leaving the crowd with the perfect ending to a night of incredible tunes.

View the full gallery by Sophia here.