Concerts often act as extremely cathartic experiences: a strobe-lit, out of body, absolutely fantastical union between intricate melodies and people of completely disparate circles all coming together in one often tightly packed venue. The right concert can bring about relief in the medium of a much needed break from a sometimes extremely intense or worry-filled reality, also known as life.
An endearing connection
One such example of the embodiment of this medium, includes British singer-songwriter Dan Croll who played at the Teragram Ballroom on Sept. 23. Well, played might be a really underwhelming thing to call what he did. He made the audience jump in moments of absolute bliss, beam in pearly white smiles, and dance in ways that would make even the silliest of toddlers chuckle. His sweet narration in between songs and his humble outlook and thankfulness to the fans became so endearing in itself. But what really captured everyone’s hearts was how genuinely easy connecting to his lyrics seemed. In his song “Bad Boy,” Croll crooned.
“Stuck in a city unable to travel, you want your hair to unravel and feel it loosening after change, you feel society is placed on a path it chose ahead of you,” Croll sang.
Croll has talent that speaks for itself. He attended the Liverpool Institute of the Performing Arts where he won the prestigious National Songwriter of the Year award. Considering the astounding show he put on for a welcoming Los Angeles crowd, I do not think a member of that audience would be surprised. Croll has a beautiful talent of taking the anxieties and stresses of life, and putting them out of your head as if he were inviting you to relax, smile and take part in this night of love and laughter with him.
Completely indebted to Croll
Throughout the night, Croll performed songs from his second studio album “Emerging Adulthood,” released in late July. The album contains synthy beats, original instrumentation and honestly super awesome lyrics. His wit and intelligence comes through loud and clear as he sings in his effortless tones. Croll sings of love, heartbreak, and the pangs of leaving and starting fresh, all topics that will definitely make a college student say, “same.” While his second album proves a bit different from his first, “Sweet Disarray”, the similar subject of both albums leads fans to believe Croll must feel quite passionate about these things.
As the night came to a close, I quickly realized how the concert had turned into one of the best evenings of my life, and for that I remain completely indebted to a British fellow named Croll. He brought along not only an extremely entertaining set of lovely and phenomenal musicianship, but also his ability to make a crowd go wild with infectious energy in the form of one wondrous voice singing back to him.
