[Photos] Quad Cities Rocks with Badflower, Goodbye June and Alborn

We've been seeing live music here and there lately.  Shows at bars, events, outdoors.  But on Friday May 7th, conerts came back into our lives.

Badflower, Goodbye June and Alborn rocked the Rust Belt each bringing their own sound and style to a crowd that was happy all night to be back at a show.

Things started with the late addition of Alborn taking the stage.  In true Albron fashion, they brought it loud and hard.  Thirty minutes of the Quad Cities own Justin, Alex, Zame and Nate playing songs you've heard on I-Rock 93.5 including a crowd participation finale of Full Circle.

Goodbye June came up next with their Nashville rock sound.  If you weren't at the show, think Dirty Honey, Blue Stones, GVF...Nashville version of Royal Blood.  They looked and sounded like the perfect band to see out at a festivle on a warm summer night.

Then it was time for the main event.  Badflower.  Before the night got started, I was lucky enough to be in the Rust Belt setting up while they were warming up.  The first song they played during sound check was "F The World".  When the band got done playing it, Josh said "that was literally the first time we've ever played that song together."  You see, Badflower recorded that song from separate places around the country while still in lockdown.  So they had never played it together.  That is something I'll never forget.  And for everyone in attendance, they shouldn't forget it either.  That is what they opened the show with.  So the Quad Cities was the first time "F The World" was played live in front of an audience.

Having never seen Badflower live I wasn't sure what to expect.  After all, a lot of their songs you hear are "softer".  The energy that Badflower brought to the stage was unreal.  the guys brought constant energy, jumping, movement and crowd interaction.  All the hits were played throughout the night.  30, Ghost, Heroin, Jester were all in the set list.  Even near the end when Josh was saying his voice was going but he was going to power through, the songs sounded great.

Before the final song of the evening, another unforgettable moment for Badflower, the Quad Cities and Josh Katz.  Josh's battle with mental health is well documented.  If you don't know, they even have a song called "x ANA x".  Well before that final song Josh addressed the crowd saying how happy they were to be back in front of people, and that it was the FIRST time Josh had performed live without taking xanax.  The crowd erupted in applause that seemed to last for minutes.  It was a great way to end a great night.  And I would tell Josh, you don't need it, because it was a phenomal, engaging show that left the audience filled with soul, smiles and memories that will last forever now that concerts are back in our lives.