Photos and review by Jennie Book
@jenniebookphotography

Jack Antonoff’s everywhere these days, and on September 19^th he was on the stage of the Greek Theater in Berkeley fronting Bleachers, and 8500 fans never wanted it to end.

But before Jack and band came on and while it was still light out, Lauren Mayberry warmed up the crowd with a seven song set that included “Crocodile Tears,” “Are You Awake?” and “Something In The Air” which she played live for the first time. Her fans were sad when she left the stage, but then… Bleachers!

Jack Antonoff’s a talented songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and singer. He got his start in the band fun. back in 2008, and in 2012 fun. won a best song Grammy for “We Are Young” and also for best new artist. And, you know, he spends some of his time writing and producing songs for Taylor Swift. Bleachers was born around 2014 as Antonoff’s solo project, but in 2023 five of his touring musicians became permanent members, and that’s who we witnessed at the Greek – a lot of super talented guys who play great songs and seem to really like each other.

Bleachers played a 21-song set filled with some big crowd favorites like “Don’t Take the Money,” “Me Before You,” and “Everybody Lost Somebody.” The set was elaborate, built for the band members to move around on, and made use of the Greek’s night-skied amphitheater and goodtime vibe – in Antonoff’s own words – “here in one of the best venues in the world!”

In a great set design twist, after “Let’s Get Married,” the rear stage big BLEACHERS backdrop pulled up to reveal a full replica of Antonoff’s working studio. He climbed up there while the rest of the band stayed below, and played a few songs while the guys sat below him, smoking cigarettes and hanging out. It made for a cool extra dimension to the performance, a little theater-like, and was meaningful because it was personal to him and he was sharing it with us.

After a few songs the curtain dropped again and Antonoff reunited with the band below and jumped back into some rocking crowd favorites like “I Wanna Get Better” and “Stop Making This Hurt.”

The elder millennial-looking crowd was in it for the long haul, with barely anyone leaving until the very end, the chilly Berkeley night air no deterrent to hearing the last chords of their favorite songs.

The Bleachers 2024 US tour finished with several nights at the Greek in Los Angeles, but the band has three more festival dates between now and the beginning of October on the east coast. Click here to get all the latest at www.bleachersmusic.com