Audience members were left speechless and “Tongue Tied” this past Friday when Grouplove performed at Foellinger Auditorium. This indie rock band visited campus as part of their Campus Consciousness Tour, which runs until Feb. 2. 

Its ecstatic, high-emotion performance enticed audience members, leading bandmember Christian Zucconi to say, “This room is filled with group love!” midway through the show.

Composed of Hannah Hooper on vocals and keys, Christian Zucconi on vocals and guitar, Sean Gadd on bass, Andrew Wessen on guitar and vocals, and Ryan Rabin on drums, Grouplove is a potent explosion of creative soul and sound. 

As the group ran onto the stage, Hooper in her full body skeleton suit, the crowd jumped to their feet. The chairs in Foellinger may as well have disappeared, because no one sat again until the end of the show. 

Within their set list was the track “Itchin’ on a Photograph” from their debut album, which when combining a hand-clapping beat and Zucconi’s hair-raising vocals, was a treasure. The quality of their live performance was as good as their studio recordings, exposing their true talents as a group. 

“Itchin’ on a Photograph” was a good piece to get the audience actively engaged; Hooper entranced the audience so well with her smile as she started to clap to the song that immediately the energy in the room went up tenfold and everyone was clapping. 

Another song they brought back Friday night was “Naked Kids.” With nostalgic lyrics such as “back corner table, order lobsters and black label, raise your glasses, here’s to living out our dreams,” the group brought the audience to a simpler time, emphasizing the theme of freedom and inducing carefree emotions.

Another amazing part of their performance was “Tongue Tied,” the track that many would claim gained most of their fame. Zucconi’s raw acoustic guitar, along with the dynamic vocals in the song, transformed Foellinger from a lecture hall to a music-crazed venue. In addition to “Tongue Tied,” the band also played “Ways to Go,” one of the songs on their recently released album, “Spreading Rumours.” Their performance of this piece, which is reminiscent of M83 meets MGMT meets The Killers, was the climax of the show. The song’s pace rapidly progresses from its beginning to its peak and adds a pinch of psychedelic sound with a synth break; it is a good display of Grouplove’s versatility. 

Foellinger is not the type of venue one might expect Grouplove to perform in, as the chairs typically make the audience prone to low-energy responses; yet the group was able to surpass this obstacle and induced dynamic responses from the audience. Although the show was far from sold out, the artists brought their A-game, making it a show worth attending. 

Alexander is a freshman in lAS. He can be reached at [email protected].