Each band took a moment for the musicians to flip on the amp or climb behind the drum kit, while DJ Isom filled the room with beats and samples that had everyone moving.

Model Cars

Model Cars The first band of the evening featured a string section and piano driven melodic rock with some lovely movements throughout both tunes lead by pianist/vocalist Claudio Olachea.

Rebecca Muir Recent alumna Rebecca Muir belted out some sultry neo soul, backed by a horn section and a rocking bluesy rhythm section of veteran musicians. Muir and her band also played at the after party at Café 939.

Nini & Ben This rootsy duo brought out some tasty blues with their first number “Down to the Road,” featuring Tommy Bohlen on pedal steel, Derek McWilliams on bass, Johnny Duke on slide guitar, and Jake Cohen holding down the groove on drums, as well singing beautiful harmonies.

Supervolcano The only band to play one long, epic song instead of two, Supervolcano had the stage presence of seasoned prog rockers with a sound and energy like early Mars Volta. High energy, enigmatic stage presence, and guitar loops made the multi-layered song a memorable one.

Nathan Reich An attentive hush fell over the crowd during the heartfelt and engaging performance from Reich, with Alexandra Spalding picking and bowing her cello and singing sweet harmonies. Tommy Bohlen returned to the stage to add his signature pedal steel textures to the Paper Planes’ front man.

White Shoe Brown Shoe Decked out in 1970s garb, White Shoe Brown Shoe brought a classic vibe to catchy rock tunes. The falsetto chorus on their second song “Off to the Races,” had everyone singing along.

Sex! The band with the name that everyone loves to say packed quite a punch. Singer Andy Burri had the swagger of James Brown meets Andrew WK, wearing neon sunglasses and a bandanna around his neck. During “Chevy Nova,” he made a lap around the orchestra seats with a wireless microphone, and rolled back onto the stage like a pro.

Shea Rose Sporting a black leather jacket, Shea Rose owned the stage on her first number, head banging a majestic afro to her double electric guitar attack with Sonya Perricone and Dave Scher. After sneaking in a surprise duet with Charlie Rockwell, Rose played acoustic guitar on her third number, and had some backup singers come out of the crowd onto the stage.

MC Clifford Kuhn-Lloyd of Re-Up

Re-Up Closing the show with some funked-out hip-hop, Re-Up had a huge sound that featured turn tables and a horn section. The rhymes of MC Cliff “Spliff” Kuhn-Lloyd over the scratching of Keith “Keef D” Dickerhofe got everyone on their feet, moving and swaying to a powerful closing act.