Michigander Returns to Cleveland at The Grog Shop

What could be the best thing to do after a long, hot, rainy, and frankly tiring day at work? That’s right, a concert. And that’s exactly what I did on Sunday, April 16th, when I got the chance to see fellow Great Lakes band Michigander, supported by Abby Holliday and Who Saved Who at the Grog Shop in Cleveland.

Who Saved Who

Hailing from (you guessed it) Cleveland, Ohio, Who Saved Who is an indie-rock band consisting of Sean McAfee on vocals and guitar, Sal Corrao on drums (though he was not present at this show), Luke Patterson on guitar, and CÍan LÍaskos on bass. As I’ve mentioned countless times in previous show reviews I’ve done, they have that Cleveland sound, blending energetic indie, rock, and alternative. WSW put out their first full-length album, Sharing The Daytime Moon, in May of 2022.

Who Saved Who doesn’t have any upcoming shows but can be found on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify

Abby Holliday

Originally from Cincinnati but now based out of Nashville, Abby Holliday (with 2 L’s) combines electronic with singer/songwriter, creating a sound that evokes a sense of nostalgia with a heavy yet energetic undertone to it.

Even though Holliday has been supporting Michigander throughout the entire tour, this show was the third show after her latest album, I’M OK NO I’M NOT, got released on Thursday, just three days before the stop in Cleveland. This was her second full-length album to date after 2021’s WHEN WE’RE FAR APART I FALL APART. The new album strays from her previously more acoustic sound and leans in the direction of the electronic element as mentioned earlier.

Her set reflected this shift, as there were only two or three songs which had a slower, more melancholy feel to them, while the rest were upbeat and got the crowd on their feet.

Abby Holliday (again that is with 2 L’s) will be supporting Michigander on the remaining shows of the spring leg of his It Will Never Be The Same tour and select shows on the summer leg. She can be found on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, and Spotify.

Michigander

Finally, around 9:30, Michigander came on stage. Formed by Jason Singer (yes his last name is what he does) in 2014 in Saginaw, Michigan, Michigander, or simply Gander, has grown from tiny house shows to selling out St. Andrew’s Hall in Detroit the night before this. This tour, It Will Never Be The Same, was originally supposed to take place in the fall of last year, but while shooting a music video, Singer fell and broke his leg, resulting in the tour being pushed back to now. It is in support of their new album of the same name, which came out on March 31st of this year,

Starting with the dancey (if that’s a word) Stay Out Of It, the crowd was immediately on their feet. Next came the drum-heavy yet catchy Better, of off his 2021 EP Everything Will Be Ok Eventually. Once the crowd was adequately hyped, Singer slowed it down with Reds, a much more acoustic-driven song.

Keeping with the mellow vibe came OK, which, being the first time I had to look away from my camera since the band came on stage, was when I realized both how small The Grog Shop is and how tall Singer is, with him comfortably resting his hand against the ceiling. After that, I moved to the back of the venue, where before getting my final shots of the night, Singer took the opportunity to do his BeReal with the crowd, which is a platform/trend I still don’t fully understand but that’s just me. After that little break, the band went into 2023’s In My Head, which was co-written and features Manchester Orchestra.

Saturday was next. A slow, melancholy song to play on yep, a Sunday. Coming back to the latest album, were The Other Way and Cannonball, pieces that incorporate elements of punk and funk, respectively, getting the crowd back on their feet. 48 was next, a mainly acoustic song to calm the crowd.

Next came East Chicago, IN, a slow but easily singable song that is actually how I discovered Michigander for myself. To begin to wind down the night was Misery, blending nostalgia and anthem.

To finish off the weekend was Let Down and Superglue, the former being an even more anthemic song with a four-on-the-floor drumbeat to get people jumping and the latter being upbeat, but at times calm, opener of the latest album, the perfect song to finish the night off.

Michigander can be found on the road finishing the spring leg of the It Will Never Be The Same tour through April and the summer leg starting in May and going through August, supported by Abby Holliday as mentioned. Jason can be found on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and most major streaming platforms.