BY RAYNA LEIGH
“Do you feel the heat, baby? We’re hot as hell!”
When Mac Saturn frontman Carson Macc called out to the cheering audience, it encapsulated the entire evening in a sentence.
Glistening from a combination of sweat, glitter and pure glam rock energy, The Struts and Mac Saturn set Fort Lauderdale’s already-hot Revolution Live ablaze with their dual sets on the Remember the Name… tour.
The night began with opener Mac Saturn, a six-piece group hailing from Detroit. With a well-received debut EP Until the Money Runs Out and tours as both openers and headliners under their belt, the band continues to prove their musical and stage prowess.
Mac Saturn has a smooth and sultry swagger to them that sounds like silk and velvet, but with the glitz of a disco ball. Hips were swaying to every song, turning the packed standing-room-only venue into a dance floor.
Bass-heavy funk pop songs like “Mr. Cadillac” and “Get On The Phone” were a stand-out, deserving of a full dance floor and dance team. However, Carson Macc commands the stage like a runway by himself, sauntering with maracas and prop telephones in hand.
Fan-favorite “Plain Clothes Gentleman” started soft, lights dim and the audience feeling the emotion of every word. But as arms raised onstage, the beat kicked in, along with a passionate solo from guitarist Mike Moody, curls flipping and stage lights glinting off his teal guitar.
As an opening act, they are a match made in heaven for The Struts, playing with similar sonic vibes and attitude. For fans of indie rock and disco, this band was a joyful blend of it all live.
With the energy ramped up, the blinding backlights rose and The Struts took the stage. The English band, who just released a new single “Too Good At Raising Hell” late last month, proved it to be true onstage. They came out, axes and glitter tops blazing, into “Dirty Sexy Money,” which instantly brought the crowd to move like they were in the finest of clubs. Dancing their way into “Body Talks” and another recent single “Fallin’ With Me,” the hot venue reached fever pitch.
Hands flying, sweat dripping, the band paraded through songs from all three of their studio albums. Standouts included the anthemic “One Night Only,” featuring frontman Luke Spiller on piano (adorned by a figurine of glam predecessor Freddie Mercury), and their cover of Lorde’s “Royals,” which brought a fresh edge to the 2013 pop song. Even the songs that weren’t charting hits for the band were sung back to them in full force by their adoring “Strutters,” many of whom have been watching them on tour over the years.
After an interlude of ‘The Jams’ -consisting mostly of songs from 2020’s album Strange Days and 2018’s YOUNG&DANGEROUS- Spiller made a grand announcement that shook the crowd. The band has officially finished recording their fourth studio album, to be released in November.
The band then launched into the title track of the album, “Pretty Vicious." While an acoustic version of the song had previously been released by the band, to hear it in full electric force brought a new sense of energy and anticipation for their new release.
Onstage, the band has an undeniably large presence, playing the stage as if it were stadium-sized. Bassist Jed Elliott and guitarist Adam Slack have stage chemistry together, playing off each other’s energy with wide smiles and big personalities. Switching sides, meeting one another for a nose-to-nose moment and facing the crowd with a wave, they complement Spiller’s larger than life Primadonna persona well. On the drums, Gethin Davies brings a shiningly silly personality into the mix, perched atop his drum glowing drum riser.
The band has been touring in the United States since around the time of their 2016 debut Everybody Wants, and has been solidifying their place as frontrunners in the modern rock world. With confident personalities and songs that match, the band consistently proves that they have what it takes to dominate the music scene; Their music blends the timeless sounds of glam and arena rock with a fresh pop-rock edge, and their live performance is reminiscent of the great icons of rock, such as Queen and the Rolling Stones (the latter of which the band has opened for in the past).
Overall, their tour name is fitting: In the current running of modern rockers, you’ll want to remember the name The Struts.
All The Struts and Mac Saturn photos are by Rayna Leigh
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