Gus Dapperton Headlines an Eventful, Sold Out Show in Philadelphia

Down on South street, a line pours out of the Theatre of Living Arts. “Gus Dapperton, Sold Out” reads on the billboard outside of the venue. The cold weather didn’t stop the fans from coming to the show last Friday night. Luckily there was a coat check inside, so the audience wasn’t sweating under their jackets. I saw Gus a month back at the All Things Go music festival in Washington D.C. It was outside, and during his set it was pouring rain. Although it was an exciting show, I’d take an inside show over a rainy set any day. I caught a sneak peak of the setlist before the show from the side of the stage. Not was I only pleased with the songs he’d be playing, but also with the fun images he added to the list itself. On it there were images of a cheese steak, Gritty, the cast of Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and Rocky flexing his muscles at the top above the song “Bluebird”. The perfect Philadelphia themed setlist with a lot of my favorite songs.

Soon enough, Gus took the stage and it was go time. After I got my shots from the front, I moved to the side and continued to watch the show. The best thing about the show was that there were moments when everything was slow and jammy, then suddenly it would drastically change and people would be jumping up and down with elation. Hearing “Palms” live is a perfect example of this type of moment. At one point I witnessed a fan sneaking into VIP so he could try and get a good picture with Gus behind him in the frame. They got thrown out before getting the shot. Whether it was for the best or not, it was pretty hilarious. The shenanigans commenced in an odd way once Gus announced that he had one last song to perform. He began to play “Post Humorous” and the crowd went wild. Fog machines filled the stage and then suddenly everything changed. The fire alarm went off and the venue filled with light. Luckily it wasn’t the light of a fire, but just the venue’s overhead lighting. It ends up that the fog machines triggered the smoke alarms bringing the show to a halt. Leaving an awkward presence in the room as Gus and his band stood on the stage in silence. They all huddled together and tried to figure out what to do with the situation. Some people ran out of the building and others raised their phones in the air and recorded what was happening. What is so ironic is that Gus covered Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire” earlier in the set. Things took a turn for the better when the alarms turned off and Gus started back up from the top with “Post Humorous”. He then treated the crowd with an additional song “First Aid”, which wasn’t originally on the setlist. It was an overall eventful night that no one there will ever forget.