Marian Hill: Live at LouFest 2017

Samantha Gongol of Marian Hill. Photo by Reema Shah (Out of the Black Photography)

LouFest in St. Louis has officially begun this weekend, the weekend of September 9th-10th, 2017. This years lineup is one of the most diverse and best in quite a while. One of the reasons why is Marian Hill a duo from Philadelphia, comprised of Jeremy Lloyd and Samantha Gongol who have captivated music fans and those in the industry when MH single 'Down' started to hit the airwaves and television spots all across the world.

Steve Davit. Photo by Reema Shah (Out of the Black Photography)

LouFest 2017 would be the first time OTR Network would cover the 2-day event and one of the acts of the lineup that caught our attention was Marian Hill. Marian Hill were set to hit the Enterprise Stage at 3:00 PM for a full 1 hour set. Immediately as the first song, they played Down and the crowd erupted in joy. People in the crowd already dancing and singing along with Samantha. The duo who were joined on stage with Steve Davit their Saxophone player, an element that the St. Louis crowd thoroughly enjoyed through out their set. Samantha was very engaging with her performance and definitely captured the crowds attention from the first note. Jeremy always keeping the beat going behind the keys and on the pads always has his hand on the pulse of the crowd. Taking them on an incredible musical joy ride. MH played some fan favorites like Lips, Good, Got It and One Time. MH even covered a classic Whitney Houston song in "I Wanna Dance With Somebody". 

Overall, Marian Hill have a style and presence all their own. They sound like no one else right now, giving us a modern take on a bluesy/jazz hybrid while also taking full advantage of the times we live in to create new sounds and songs that will have us dancing and singing along. Live, I would dare to say they sound even better. You get the duo playing with a live crowd and when to take their spots. The addition to Steve Davit on the sax is also a huge contribution to the popularity of the live production that is Marian Hill. Off The Record highly recommends you see Marian Hill LIVE to get the full experience and immerse yourself with a crowd of people coming to see a show. 

The Grade

A

Photos shown in this article were taken by Reema Shah (Out of the Black Photography), visit http://outoftheblackphotography.com for more photos like these and so much more. Follow her on Instagram @outoftheblackphotography.