Penguin Prison Throws a Dance Party at the Sold Out Roxy Theater

There are a couple telltale signs that you have just left a really great live show.

– When you walk out the front door of the venue, you hear no less than 6 people say it was one of the best shows they’ve seen in a while.

– You don’t realize you’re covered in sweat until you hear 6 people talk about how awesome the show was, and then say “but damn, I’m like dripping in sweat”.

– The first thing you say to your Uber driver is “can you put on Lionel Richie’s “All Night Long”?

The last point is a bit out of left field, but would make perfect sense if you were at The Roxy last night for the sold out Penguin Prison show. If you would have heard them close their first set with RAC’s biggest hit off the last album “Hollywood”, and bring it home with a perfectly executed cover of “All Night Long”, there’s almost no way you wouldn’t have requested it from your Uber driver Yohance (pronounced like Beyonce, but with a “Yohan” in front of the “ce”).

From the moment I walked into the venue, I could tell this was going to be a great night. Paradise was on stage, keeping the vibes in a good place with a nice mix of 90’s house, new wave and indie rock’ish sounds – and the crowd was definitely into it. Most of the dance floor was already filled up with heads bouncing and hands waving, as little reflections from the disco ball overhead painted everyone’s faces with stars and tiny halos.

By the time the clock struck 10:30, this crowd was unequivocally ready to get the party started. Each time one of the house DJ’s songs ended, the whole crowd clapped and started whistling, but were sadly disappointed for 3 more songs because the band was not quite ready to go on. By the 4th song everyone knew it was time, and once the last beat hit and the curtain started to rise, everyone swiftly stopped their conversations, turned to the stage and slapped a huge smile on their face.

Front man Chris Glover wasted no time amping things up by walking straight to the edge of the stage and leaning out towards the crowd – as the first row reached out to touch whatever part of his body or guitar was within striking distance. After that, there was not a single moment during the show you could look around and see someone not dancing. Of course the hipsters with the low fade haircuts and mustaches were grooving, and of course the guy in the flannel shirt brought there by his girlfriend was dancing, and even the two guys near the bar with the pastel green polo shirts and stone washed jeans were head bobbing.

Before I knew it, it was already close to 11:45 and the guys had whipped through a bunch of songs from the new album “Lost in New York”, including “Show Me the Way” and “Never Gets Old” (two of my favorites). Just as I put my camera away, and walked to the bar to grab a drink after “All Night Long”, Chris hops back on stage along with the rest of the band and sends 500 Penguin Prison fans home with a “Don’t Fuck with My Money” encore – the song that got me into the band a few years back.

All in all, it was a great night. But it’s not enough to listen to these guys on Soundcloud or on iTunes. Do yourself a favor and get out to one of their shows next time they come to town.

Check out their new album and photos from the show below.