STONE COLD FOX HEADLINES AT ROUGH TRADE FOR THEIR BIGGEST SHOW YET

The stage at Rough Trade in Williamsburg is empty with blue lights highlighting all of the instruments, ready to be used like musical prostitutes. Stone Cold Fox drummer Aaron Hamel comes out first and starts playing a beat. The rest of the band follows as the crowd erupts in an enthusiastic roar. Lead singer Kevin Henthorn leans into the microphone and starts belting out the first lyrics to the band’s hit song “Sold” with great conviction.

This concert was the first time Stone Cold Fox headlined at Rough Trade and was also the biggest show the band has played together thus far. One would assume that a band in this situation would show their nerves on stage and not be able to perform to their full potential but that was not the case for Stone Cold Fox.

The energy that they emitted throughout the room created a vibe that made it impossible for anyone to stand still, including myself, making it really difficult to take non-blurry photos! Bassist Justin Bright threw his long, curly blonde hair all over as he feverishly strummed his bass; Henthorn’s lip snarled every time he belted out his notes with passion; guitarist Graham Stone just couldn’t stop smiling the whole time; Hamel was beating the drums so hard I’m surprised his man bun stayed intact the entirety of the set; and keyboardist Ariel Loh stroked the keys with a grace not usually seen during a rock performance.

The first half of Stone Cold Fox’s set consisted of songs from their 2014 album “Memory Palace” including “Seventeen,” “Darling,” “Adaptation,” and “January.” They even brought out their friend Natalie Mack to sing a few songs with them, her voice adding an airy, ethereal wave to their gritty rock sound. They then played “American” and “Give Up the Kids” off of their 2012 EP “The Young,” seemingly feeling nostalgic about that fact that those songs are about three years old now. They then surprised the crowd with their new song “Contagion” they had been working on for a while and played for the first time that night.

They initially ended their set with “Father Spirit” but the crowd was channeling Oliver Twist and asking for more. As Stone Cold Fox ran back onto the stage Henthorn shouted, “This is to say goodnight!” They played a song called “Dreams” and what a way to say goodnight it was. I would be lying if I said I didn’t go home and have a dream about their amazing show that night.

Article by: Merissa Blitz