HOUSTON — On Tuesday, Feb. 25, Deep Sea Diver opened for Joseph at the House of Blues in Houston. The concert was held in the small “Peacock Room,” which gave the performance a more personal feel. Both bands complimented each other quite well, and good vibes were flowing through the room during these intimate performances.
Deep Sea Diver gave an interesting opening for the night. While most songs were decently catchy, the band’s sound was not unique. The lead singer had a great voice, however, it lacked a great deal of depth. She was great at playing the guitar, which makes sense considering she has played for bands such as Beck, The Shins and the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s in the past. One song which stood out the most from the band was “Impossible Weight.” What took this song to the next level was when the bassist began singing. The combination of voices turned the performance from mediocre to magical.
Joseph, on the other hand, was a spiritual experience. When listening to them on Spotify, the band seems pretty good, but they impress like no other when they perform live. The three women have such strong and natural voices, they do not even need instruments. Some of the best moments of the performance was when there were no instruments at all, just their angelic voices. The experience was really something that could transport you somewhere else for the moment.
They opened up with “In My Mind,” leaving the more impressive songs for later in the setlist. The band continued with more upbeat songs such as “SOS (Overboard),” keeping the feel in the room upbeat and fun. One of the best parts of the entire performance, however, was when the band sang “Come On Up To The House.” The mood of the entire venue shifted and an instant feeling of tranquility came over the crowd. The harmonics were angelic and even the loud ladies behind us in the crowd stopped gossiping for four minutes. Serotonin was definitely flowing through all of us at this point.
The absolute best part of their performance is when Natalie Schepman belted out a massively impressive note at the end of “Without You.” This is not something anyone is able to hear without seeing them live because in the Spotify version she does not hit the note. This was the band’s last song of the night, and they definitely managed to end the performance with a bang.
The experience of seeing Joseph live cannot be matched when talking about their raw talent. They are definitely a band to watch. It was extremely impressive seeing them hit notes better than they do in the recording studio. Everyone who has the opportunity to see Joseph live should expect to have chills throughout the performance. They have come such a long way as a band, and it will be interesting to see where they go from here.