Last weekend my sister took me to a Walk the Moon concert in Charlotte, North Carolina, for my birthday. Well really, she took me because our other sister ditched her, but I like to pretend she gave me a wonderfully thoughtful birthday present. Maddie had seen Walk the Moon three times before this, so she was excited to initiate me into the fandom. After leaving my wallet at home, having to drive 30 minutes back to get it, driving an hour and a half, and waiting in line for four hours, we were in.
We were in the second row. Walk the Moon was awesome live and the concert was hype. But the opener was even more incredible.
Lead singer of Walk the Moon, Nicholas Petricca gettin' hype AF
HOLYCHILD opened for Walk the Moon, and we had never heard of them before. Someone played a clip of their song while we were waiting in line, and I thought it was okay but nothing special. I was so wrong. HOLYCHILD is a drummer named Louis and a singer named Liz, and that’s it. They met in college at George Washington University and produced music together without a label until 2015 when Glassnote Records signed them to their label.
When they walked out, I first noticed the singer’s hair, which was bright blue. She was wearing mismatched clothes, but it was definitely her style. The second thing I noticed was how beautiful her voice was. Not just her singing voice, but her talking voice. too. When she talks, it sounds like honey, and when she sings, it’s really tinny, high-pitched and unique. She was so into her music, dancing around with swaying hips and air punches to the beat. Maddie and I were jamming out to every song even though we had never listened to them before.
The coolest part about HOLYCHILD was how interactive they were with the crowd. Liz jumped over the barricade into the audience and walked around singing -- twice. When she came back up on stage, she had given her bucket hat to someone. Louis threw out multiple drumsticks just because the crowd loved it.
When Walk the Moon was doing their encore, my sister and I went to get waters and chill out in the back for a bit. We were walking to the back when we spotted blue hair underneath a bacon-printed bucket hat. We looked at each other and decided to inch closer. Liz was dancing with fans to Walk the Moon and taking some pictures, so we walked up to her. This is the conversation we had:
“Hey can we get a picture with you?
“Oh yeah, sure!”
“I’m sure you’re tired of people asking you that.”
“No, of course not! What’s your name?
“Berkeley, and this is my sister Maddie.”
“Aww, that’s awesome. It’s nice to meet you two. Did you like the show?”
“Yes, you guys were awesome! This was my birthday present from Maddie.”
“Happy birthday! Are you a Libra?”
“Yeah!”
“Me too! When’s your birthday?”
“Oct. 11, what about you?”
“Oct. 8, that’s awesome!”
And then she proceeded to high five me, kiss me on the check and hug me. It made my night. Afterwards, Maddie and I listened to HOLYCHILD the entire way back home.
Lead singer Liz Nistico, the nicest person ever
That was the best birthday present I’ve ever had. I definitely believe a band being so interactive with their fans is a rare thing that is only seen before they hit the peak of fame. It was cool to be a part of the soft wakes before their tidal wave of fame to come.
If you’re interested in HOLYCHILD, they released an EP in 2014 called MINDSPEAK, and an album released this year called The Shape of Brat Pop to Come.
Here is their music video for their most popular song.
