The Jonas Brothers are on a roll. After a slew of special shows on the east coast and a successful Broadway run, the band announced three secret shows in Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth and Baltimore to promote their upcoming sixth studio album The Album out May 12 via Republic Records. Their die-hard fans of course went wild and immediately sold out all three nights.
The Los Angeles show took place first on April 25th at the 1,600-seat venue The Theatre at Ace Hotel. A very small intimate place. The crowd was mostly comprised of women in their late 20s -- fans who have been following their careers since their teens. The band started off the night with their most recent single, the catchy “Waffle House." After the song, Nick Jonas explain how the show was going to work. They planned to play new songs in the first half of the show, then take a short 15-minute intermission and return to play "all the fucking" hits. There was just one condition, "You gotta pretend to know all the words to these songs, okay?"
The band stuck to their word, first performing 9 tracks from the upcoming album. It was a stripped-down, acoustic performance as the band was only accompanied by their band (including Joe Jonas' DNCE drummer Jack Lawless and guitarist JinJoo Lee) and a six-piece chorus. The Jonas Brothers shared how the new album is an ode to all the major milestones: family, fatherhood, and love of course. The songs are mature and tender, as they've all grown up and have started families. The song "Little Bird" stood out thanks to the storytelling of a baby girl growing up and walking down the aisle. For the album, Jonas Brothers collaborated with New York-based songwriter and producer Jon Bellion --whose influence is very visible. The new tracks have their signature pop hooks but are filled with bigger chorus melodies.
After the 15-minute break, the band returned with a thrilling performance of all their hits from the current ones including "Leave Before You Love Me" and "What a Man Gotta Do" to the classics ones like “SOS” "Year 300" and “Burnin’ Up.” The fans sang along to each and every song, knowing all the lyrics. Joe and Nick are strong frontmen, who know how to share the stage along their guitarist brother Kevin. They all have strong live vocals. Especially Joe as he's not afraid to growl and show off those high notes. Nick is a charismatic force, he knows how to work a crowd and get their energy pumping.
The band even took time to perform some of their solo work. First Nick took the stage solo to give a rousing performance of his 2016 collab with Tove Lo, "Close." Then Joe appeared with his bandmates of DNCE to perform “Toothbrush.” After that fun performance, the band reunited for Nick's biggest solo hit "Jealous" and DNCE took the stage one more for “Cake by the Ocean.” Guitarist JinJoo Lee earned the biggest applause of the night thanks to her wicked guitar solo.
The show was a nice mix of the old and the new. The Jonas Brothers know how to hype up their fans and deliver a one-of-a-kind experience. "See you in September" the band teased as they finished the night with the cheeky track "Sucker."
The Jonas Brothers are hitting the road with a just announced 35-date North American trek. The Tour kicks off in August with a pair of shows in New York City’s Yankee Stadium.
For more visit jonasbrothers.com
Photo credit: Cynthia Parkhurst
Set 1 (The Album):
Waffle House
Summer Baby
Montana Sky
Sail Away
Vacation Eyes
Little Bird
Walls
Celebrate!
WINGS
Set 2:
Leave Before You Love Me
What a Man Gotta Do
That's Just the Way We Roll
S.O.S.
Only Human
Close
Toothbrush
Jealous
Cake by the Ocean
Lovebug
Year 3000
Burnin' Up
Sucker
