Kiva Bank, Contributing Photographer
Fans packed together in a sweat filled crowd Saturday night to see Joe Keery, who performs under the stage name Djo, begin his “Another Bite” tour alongside Post Animal, a psychedelic rock band.
The band opened for Keery, their former bandmate who had been part of the Chicago group’s formation in 2014. Keery reunited with the band this year for their album “Iron,” which was released on July 25.
“Unfortunately I can’t write two songs that sound like they’re on the same record so you guys are going to have to hang on,” Djo told the crowd, which included his father, whom the singer shouted out.
Djo played several songs from his genre-mixing discography, opening with the techno-pop song, “Awake.” He played many of his most popular songs throughout the night, including the ’80s-esque nostalgic rock hit, “End of Beginning.”
Quinn Matteson ’28, who has been a fan of Djo since the release of his debut album, “Twenty Twenty,” in 2019, likes that the artist shifts genres. Matteson saw Djo perform earlier this year in Denver for his “Back on You” tour, before Djo released new albums “The Crus” in April and “The Crus Deluxe” on Sept. 12.
“I really like the new album and the new Deluxe,” Matteson said. “It’s definitely a little bit different of a mood, but it works super well.”
Throughout the show, Djo explored a variety of musical modes. He sang, played guitar and mixed music live on stage, sometimes cycling through all of these in a single song.
Djo, right, mixes onstage. Kiva Bank, Contributing Photographer
Fan Victoria Thurber enjoyed his stylistic choices, the lighting and his “vocal runs.”
“I think he’s a musical genius,” she said. “I think that everything he does is really awesome.”
Thurber, who has been a fan since 2022, was accompanied by friend Eden Mata, both wearing pink sleeved baby tees that read “Who the fuck is Djoel Keeny?”
They explained the shirts were a play on words inspired by an interview in which Keery joked he had an evil twin named Joel Keeny.
Mata said she has been a fan of Keery since he was in Post Animals in 2016, before he left the band in 2017 to focus on his role as Steve Harrington in the hit Netflix series “Stranger Things.” With the release of his first single “Roddy” in July 2019, Keery began using the musical alias “Djo” — pronounced like his first name, “Joe.”
As longtime followers and frequent concert attenders, both Mata and Thurber said they have enjoyed seeing him improve over the years.
“I remember going to early shows, and they weren’t the greatness you see today,” Mata said, remarking that he has developed more stage presence. Thurber added that his ability to be vulnerable with the crowd has made his performances even more enjoyable to watch.
Djo led the audience through an electrifying musical score, until, in the midst of singing “Delete Ya,” he abandoned his microphone. The singer halted his performance when he noticed a member of the audience had passed out.
While the apparently unconscious fan was escorted out of the pit, Djo surveyed the state of the audience.
“Anyone need water?” he asked the crowd.
Numerous people raised their hands, and Djo and his band proceeded to toss water bottles to the audience members.
The sold-out show had 2,000 people in attendance, packing people next to each other. Ian Bunting, operations manager at College Street Music Hall, said that younger crowds, like the one at Djo’s show, tend to be high energy and “super sweaty,” which contributes to a dehydration problem.
He explained people often hang outside the venue all day without eating or drinking much, so they come into the concert hot, leading to dehydration.
“When you have this many people in a crowded area, it’s gonna get hot,” Matteson said, adding that he thought the venue handled the situation well by handing out as much water as they could.
Typically someone who looks unwell is escorted to the lobby, and according to Bunting, once they drink water and their complexion returns to normal, they can usually return to the concert to enjoy the rest of their evening.
But on Saturday, two attendees were transported by ambulance to Yale Hospital, where Bunting assured they would be taken good care of.
Thurber and Mata, who were in the middle of the crowd by the barricade, said they thought Keery handled the situation well too.
“I think he did a fantastic job,” said Mata.“There’s been a lot of shows where he has shown a lot of care for the audience.”
Luciana Varkevisser, Contributing Photographer
Djo’s performance ended on an upbeat note as he jammed out to “Back on You.”
Yet, the crowd still wasn’t satisfied when the lights came up. They continued to chant for Djo, asking for one more song.
After a few minutes of suspense, the pit lights dimmed again and Djo came out to perform a two-song encore. The crowd roared with the opening notes of “Chateau (Feel Alright),” one of his most popular songs.
“This song and dance is only possible because of you guys listening to the music,” Djo said as he thanked the crowd before performing his last song of the night, “Flash Mountain.”
The energy to the crowd reached its peak as Post Animal came out to perform alongside Djo for the finale, ending the night with a rock bang.
Post Animal is set to return to Connecticut on Nov. 5 for their performance at Space Ballroom in Hamden.
Kiva Bank is a sophomore in Pauli Murray studying cognitive science. She covers dance, a cappella and theater for the arts desk.
