Young the Giant's In the Open Tour Captures the Fragile Beauty of Live Music in Chicago's Intimate Athenaeum Theatre: Live Review
- Abby Anderson
- Oct 6
- 3 min read
Burning incense, oriental rugs, warm lamps, and a soft haze carved out space on an early fall evening at Chicago's North Side Atheneum Theatre for Young the Giant's In the Open Tour to blossom. Ornate balconies of velvet-lined seats filled in to the room's intimate capacity, lending an air of elegance and stoicism to the band's long-time artistic vision to bring the authenticity of raw music to life in the first of two sold out nights in the final shows of their most personal and eloquent tour to date.
In a wash of soft light and ambient instrumental tones, the band opened with ethereal, stripped "Islands." A distinctly soft introduction in comparison to so many indie-alternative rock bands of Young the Giant's caliber, the band set the tone for the personalized nature of the In the Open concept, making the production solely about the band, the audience, and the music from the dimming of the lights. Comprised of lead singer Sameer Gadhia, lead guitarist Jacob Tilley, rhythm guitarist Eric Cannata, bassist Payam Doostzadeh, and drummer Francois Comtois, Young the Giant settled into an easy camaraderie with the crowd, honoring the sanctity of the ability to come together in spaces to hear live music, with Gadhia bantering "let's play some old school" before opening into wider sonics with YTG classics "Apartment" and "Cough Syrup."
Dedicating the song simply to humanity, "Firelight" ebbed and flowed with moments of softness and strength, reintroducing the band's support act Cassandra Coleman to duet the song and inviting the audience to envelop the adorned walls of the theater in the light of shimmering phone flashlights. Between songs, the band paused to ask who was seeing their first Young the Giant show, drawing a surprisingly small cheer from the newcomers, indicating the loyalty the band's fanbase who return to their shows regardless of setting or setlist.
For “Strings,” Gahdia moved to the vintage piano parallel to Comtois's kit and Tilley's rack of sleek guitars, slowing the tempo again and creating an intimate contrast in the flow of the bands set. Talking between other setlist classics like "Panoramic Girl" and "Art Exhibit," the band also eluded to the inspiration for this string of shows, which has included open air sets everywhere from the mountain-side Waikiki Shell in Honolulu to the open-field Firefly Distillery in Charleston. Their In the Open YouTube series from over a decade ago lent the inspiration for the unique venue selection across this run of shows, with the band revealing the long-standing desire, shared by fans and themselves, to play shows in unconventional spaces, with fan-favorites, band-favorites, deep cuts, and unreleased music comprising each slightly rotating setlist. Bringing this concept to life, the band floated through moments of novelty with the haunting melodies of stripped “Bitterfruit” and classic simplicity in "Amerika."
As the last act of the set arrived, the band spoke candidly about their second album, Mind Over Matter, explaining how the project had opened the floodgates for them creatively with new recording techniques and synths. The band acknowledged that the creative shift had been a move that had surprised some, but was also one that that they embraced proudly, unapologetic for the shift and the fruits it bore in the form of their biggest hit, title track "Mind Over Matter." Leaving an air of stunning emotionality and intimacy over the room with an encore-less closing, Young the Giant sealed In the Open with that illustrious hit, with the crowd swaying and singing along to the most fitting of lyrics: "Go to watch the show; curtain's closed / And when the seasons change / Will you stand by me?"
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