Johnnyswim, one of the most passionate ensembles I have ever seen, has once again managed to leave me speechless. Friday night at the Ark cannot get much better than having a sold out crowd, everyone excitedly anticipating the lovely couple Amanda and Abner to take the stage. Of course the Ark always offers itself to a more intimate atmosphere than the common concert venue, but there is something about the chemistry between these two performers that makes you think you have truly witnessed something personal and beautiful.
To start their concert, they walked straight out and jumped right into the Christmas classics, followed up shortly by some of their favorite hits. Although I was skeptical as to how one could work Christmas tunes in with a Johnnyswim concert, I was amazed at how smoothly it worked. They made each of their Christmas renditions their own and put no less than their usual amount of passion and soul into every song. I have to say their version of “What Are You Doing New Years Eve” will be making an easy appearance as my favorite holiday song this season. And of course the additional surprise of realizing they were releasing all these covers on their very own Christmas EP was frosting on the cake. I highly recommend it.
And what would a Johnnyswim concert be if they didn’t reaffirm every belief you had about the world being a beautiful place. Right before they went to intermission, they performed their single “Hallelujah”, an empowering song they wrote while volunteering abroad. They managed to throw in a very genuine description of their experience with orphans on an island off the coast of Asia, asking the audience to spare whatever they can to make the world a better place.
Overall, this concert reaffirmed my belief in music to touch your heart in the most powerful way. Listening to their music, the audience cannot help but smile and move their bodies to the beautiful melodies as well as listen in awe to the lyrics written by this inspirational duo. There is not a single song in their repertoire that I would not have loved to hear live, but I feel blessed to have been there that night, just to experience their zeal first-hand for the second time in my life. I urge anyone who has the opportunity to see this band live. You will not be disappointed.
