On Friday, the Student Government Association hosted their 16th annual Eaglepalooza in Downtown Hattiesburg. Headliners for this concert series were Moon Taxi, The New Respects and The Prom Knights.
Even though early in the evening there was concern about if there would be a good turnout due to weather, Eaglepalooza was a success.
I will preface my opinion of the evening by saying I know my opinion of The Prom Knights is rather unpopular among the Southern Miss and Hattiesburg community.
The Prom Knights is a Hattiesburg cover band, and they’ve performed at many Greek life parties and at
The Prom Knights opened Eaglepalooza with covers of All American Rejects’ “Dirty Little Secret,” The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside” and Fall Out Boy’s “Sugar We’re Going Down.” The Prom Knights definitely brought the energy in their performances of crowd favorites and set the tone for the event.
Next in the lineup was The New Respects, who brought so much soul and energy. The New Respects is a family band out of Nashville whose performance really showed their chemistry and love for performing. I think it’s really special for a family to perform together and share their message and love of music with an audience.
The strong female role within the band was so inspiring and refreshing in between the male dominating bands of The Prom Knights and Moon Taxi. The coordination of lights with their performance was the best of the night not only from a spectator standpoint but also from my photographer’s. The flow of lights in tune with their performance made for the best shots of the evening.
Photos by Bethany Morris.
Prior to Eaglepalooza I had heard of The New Respects and listened to their song “Something to Believe In” as it came across a commercial on Spotify. I can definitely say that seeing them perform that song live was hands down one of the best performances of the night. The New Respects closed their performance with a rendition of Aretha Franklin’s “Respect.” It was definitely a creative way to end their performance and keep their names in the minds of the audience.
Lastly, but surely not least, Moon Taxi took the stage to close the evening. I’ve listened to Moon Taxi for several years now and really vibe with their music and aesthetic. Hearing some of my personal favorites such as “Let the Record Play,” “All Day All Night” and “River Water” live was pretty incredible. Being in the front row and seeing all the fans of Moon Taxi rock out was pretty phenomenal and a great way to end a Friday night. Aside from performing their original songs, Moon Taxi did a rendition of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “We Are the Champions.” The crowd went wild during this performance of iconic Queen songs and reasonably so.
Eaglepalooza was a success all around. Once the crowd filled the streets, there was so much energy that only grew as the night grew colder.
