On August 14, Franklin Jonas & The Byzantines brought the First of Many Tour to the House of Blues Voodoo Room in San Diego for an evening of fresh sounds and stories.
With a capacity limit of less than 200, the Voodoo Room is known for being a very intimate setting where fans can get up close and personal with their favorite artists. From the moment he stepped on stage, Franklin Jonas took full opportunity of the environment, pointing out fans in the front row and making eye contact with as many fans throughout the room as he could.
If the warm and welcoming folk sounds of songs like “Revelator” and “Memory Lane” weren’t enough to make one feel fuzzy inside at the beginning of the show, Franklin’s stage prescience and visible gratitude towards the audience would have definitely sealed the deal. When a fan handed Franklin a bouquet, he appeared to be full of joy, and went on to express his immense appreciation for the crowd joining him and his band for the evening.
Nearly a year ago, a new adventure started for Franklin Jonas, as he busked with his newly formed band The Byzantines at his brothers’ concerts. These acoustic performances allowed crowds to get acquainted with Franklin’s sound, and served as a clear message that Franklin was ready to carve his own path in the music world.
An album has been recorded, but is still yet to be released. Despite this, many fans in the audience at the San Diego show knew all the lyrics to the songs, and this caused Franklin seemed overwhelmed with emotion throughout the evening.
The extent of Franklin interacting with the fans didn’t stop at just high-fiving fans or grabbing phones that were set on recording mode. Franklin jumped into the crowd twice during the show, and at one point, the whole band joined in to perform “Oasis.”
Towards the end of the show, Franklin performed a cover of “Beverly Hills” by Weezer, and declared that “the next 15 minutes is a party.” He proceeded to invite nearly a dozen fans on stage to send off the evening with him, gleefully singing and dancing along to “Road Soda” and “First of Many.” Franklin noted that the tour was titled ‘First of Many’ in hopes that the experiences and memories would indeed be the first of many more to come. With such a warm reception from fans throughout the evening, it’s safe to say that this is just the start of the journey for Franklin Jonas & the Byzantines, with many shows and projects to look forward to.
