This weekend I went to The Grey Eagle in Asheville, NC to go see Florida indie band flipturn in concert. To state it simply, this was one of the coolest concerts I have ever been to.
This show was the second stop on flipturn’s tour after the release of their debut album, “Shadowglow”. Opening for flipturn was Nordista Freeze, a band I had never heard of until they came on stage that evening.
Overview
Both flipturn and Nordista Freeze did not disappoint. Nordista Freeze was a great opener, they did a great job hyping up the crowd before the main event. flipturn did an excellent job, their performance gave me a new appreciation for every song they played.
It was my first time at the Grey Eagle. I think the venue an artist plays at can add or detract a lot from the show. While both bands utilized the small venue very well, a slightly bigger venue would have been better.
I think the organization of the entrance to the Grey Eagle was quite poor for a show this large. The entrance to the stage, ticket check, and merch were all in one narrow hallway which made it quite a cramped waiting experience before they opened the doors to the stage.
I was pretty close to the front of the venue for the show. This enhanced my experience of the show greatly because I could see everything that was happening on stage easily and everything was perfectly loud.
After getting in right after the doors opened, I was happy to see Nordista Freeze come out right on time. As I have gone to more concerts, I have come to appreciate this more and more.
Nordista Freeze
Nashville indie band Nordista Freeze was quite frankly wild to watch live; I don’t think I have ever seen an opener bring so much energy so instantly to a crowd.
Every member of this band has such off-the-walls energy and watching them riff off of each other. They played with energy like it was their first show ever but with the confidence of having played a million shows before.
The band is comprised of a drummer, bassist, lead singer/tambouriner, rhythm guitarist and lead guitarist. The lead singer also brought his girlfriend out at the end of the set to sing with him.
Nordista Freeze members were not scared to use the smallness of The Grey Eagle to their advantage. Many members jumped down into the crowds throughout the show. The lead guitarist played one of the most technical solos I’ve ever heard while in a pit.
The lead singer/tambouriner brought a crazy amount of hype to the show. He ran through the crowd over five times and hopped up into the trusses of the venue and started swinging around, twice. He was extremely in-tune with the band as well, emphasizing every important note and beat drop with his tambourines.
Seeing Nordista Freeze open instantly made me a fan. My favorite’s they played live were “Wysteria” and “All I Wanna Do”.
flipturn
flipturn had a comparitively chill energy compared to Nordista Freeze, sadly we did not get to see lead singer Dillon Basse get up and swing in the trusses, but that is not to say they did not bring energy to the show.
I first got into them in 2020 from their hit, “August” and I had only listened to them semi-regularly until the release of their debut album, “Shadowglow”. This album is in my opinion their best work and I was excited to hear so many songs from it live.
They played mostly new material, even some songs they had never played live before, which I was extremely happy to hear. The crowd was too, as everyone in the venue was singing right along to every song.
They started the show with the first track off of “Shadowglow”, “The Fall”. They then went directly into “Sad Disco”, which I enjoyed a lot more live compared to the recording. A highlight of the setlist was hearing them play the transition from “Burn” to “Weepy Woman” live, which is my favorite part from their new album.
Seeing flipturn live gave me a new appreciation for their instrumentals. The drummer of flipturn was absolutely ripping it up. In a short intermission, he took a tom and crash symbol off of his kit and had two audience members hold them and he played a short rhythm.
The lead singer and bassist both seemed so genuinely happy to be there. Both of them were smiling throughout the entire show. The keyboardist and lead guitarist were both in their elements as well. It was fun to see the keyboardist move from keyboard to keyboard between songs.
The set design and lighting weren’t outstanding, but I think they did the most they could with what they had. I was confused by the choice to put the drummer on the right-side of the stage instead of the center. However, besides that one small gripe, I think they made the best out of the small stage they were playing on.
Encore
After a quick walk-off stage, they came back on and played their most popular song, “August”. They followed this by a song I had never heard before “Nickel”. I like hearing how bands try to make the most out of their hit songs and flipturn did not disappoint with “August”. Even though I had never heard “Nickel” before this show, I thought it was the perfect song to end on.
Overall, flipturn was awesome to see live. This concert provided everything I wanted and more. It was the type of show that made my ears ring for hours afterwards and I was not upset about it at all.
The crowd was one of the most energetic I have ever been in,. Everyone seemed super excited to be there and was singing along to every song.
I am definitely going to try to see flipturn again the next time they make their way to North Carolina. If only to hear the transition from “Burn” to “Weepy Woman” one more time. Seeing them live has me listening to their new album and looking forward to their next one even more than I was before.
You can buy tickets to go see flipturn live here, I would definitely recommend seeing them if they are coming anywhere near you. You can also check out an album review of “Shadowglow” by Michelangelo here.
