REVIEW: Turnover Brings Old Favorites and New Material to Empire Live
06/08 @ Empire Live, Albany
Photos by Violet Foulk
“Turnover was the reason everyone bought a ticket, but when the lights came up at Empire Live, it felt like all three bands had given the crowd something to talk about.”
Narrow Head and She's Green were openers for the band Turnover, and each one acted as their own concert in itself. One brought dreamy, angelic vocals and an almost ethereal stage presence, the other brought enough distortion and raw energy to start the first mosh pit of the night. Together, they made for an interesting lead-up to Turnover, a band that has spent years evolving from its emo roots into something much more indie.
Watching She's Green lead singer Zofia Smith felt like I was watching an angel hover above the ground. She glided across the stage wielding her tambourine until she reached the microphone, and her voice underscored those angelic qualities as soon as she started singing. Smith and guitarist Liam Armstrong's onstage intimacy, the eye contact and non-verbal communication they shared throughout the set, was one of those interactions that gives you chills when you notice it. It felt a lot less like a performance and more like genuine support for one another.
In a heartwarming moment after their performance, Armstrong handed his guitar pick to a little girl standing near the barricade.
While She's Green brought a dreamier atmosphere to Empire Live, Narrow Head brought the heat. Their raucous set ignited the mosh pit and crowd surfing, though I was surprised it had taken half of their set.
Their set was loud, gritty, and their stage presence was phenomenally raw and it was evident it was energy-consuming. Each member, especially lead singer Jacob Duarte, was dripping in sweat early on in their performance. During “Hard to Swallow,” Duarte took the microphone off the stand while screaming, sinking down to the floor and getting on his knees to put every ounce of energy he had into it. Kora Puckett, guitarist and backup vocalist, matched that same intensity throughout the duration of the set, screaming into the microphone with the same powerful energy.
It was an interesting juxtaposition to see an opener like Narrow Head, who has loud and powerful shoegazey-rock vocals and instrumentals, right before Turnover’s slower and more relaxed vibes. It felt like the decision to have them open was a bit of an homage to Turnover's original style of music.
By the time Turnover took the stage, the crowd had already experienced two very different interpretations of shoegaze and alternative rock, a launching point for Turnover to display their own range for the rest of the night.
The band opened with "Nightjar" from their new album Down On Earth, released the week prior.
Getz thanked the audience who had already checked out the new record, and for those that hadn’t, hoped that they would enjoy hearing those songs throughout the evening.
The band followed with "I See and Realize," also from Down On Earth, which ended up being one of my favorite songs of the night. Getz's vocals felt stronger here and, at least to me, were slightly reminiscent of the band's earlier emo sound from Magnolia.
Turnover then began playing some of the songs the crowd had clearly been waiting for from their 2015 hit album Peripheral Vision. "New Scream," "Take My Head," "Hello Euphoria," "Like Slow Disappearing," "Interpersonal," "Threshold," and "I Would Hate You If I Could" all drew huge reactions from the audience, who seemed to know every single word, which gave me a feeling of imposter syndrome since I didn’t.
In between songs, Getz reminded the crowd how long it had been since Turnover had played in Albany.
"This is the first time we've played in Albany in like five years. None of you were there."
The drummer responded with a rimshot.
"That wasn't a joke," Getz replied.
Another rimshot.
"That wasn't either."
The band eventually closed the night with "Cutting My Fingers Off," one of their most popular songs and one that still carries a lot of weight with both longtime and newer fans.
It was interesting to see Turnover as a massive fan of their earlier, more angsty, emo style, whereas now they lean much more indie. I told my friends who accompanied me (and who aren’t super familiar with his music) that they reminded me a little bit of Mac DeMarco, and that Getz even kind of looks like him, but that's just my opinion.
Turnover was the reason everyone bought a ticket, but when the lights came up at Empire Live, it felt like all three bands had given the crowd something to talk about. From the angelic energy of She’s Green to the screaming chaos of Narrow Head, it was an incredible performance to see live.
