Of all the places I could have celebrated St. Patrick’s Day and the final night of Spring Break, I chose the Gothic Theater in Denver where the pop band COIN brought quite the dance party along with it. My body hurts and my throat is scratchy from all of my yell-singing, but it was a great end to my Spring Break and the band’s tour, as we were the final stop.Not only was the night absolutely beautiful in Denver, but the Gothic was a great venue for the little pop four-piece from Nashville. It was filled with life and color, just like COIN is, making the experience that much better.
While waiting in line for doors to open, I had the chance to say hi to the lead singer, Chase Lawrence. I interviewed him just last week regarding this tour, so he remembered me once I said my name. “Abbey! Yes, hello,” he said while grabbing my hand, pulling me into a hug and telling me I was “so wonderful.” As a journalist aspiring to interview bands for a living, this was a big moment for me.
After getting a decent spot in the venue and waiting for the opener to go on stage, I was filled with excitement, as per usual. My anticipation was so much higher at this show, though because I had interviewed Chase and had a connection to the band that goes beyond listening to and enjoying its music. I was excited to see the conversation we had about this tour come to life for me. As I tried to keep my patience, the lights came up and out came The Aces, an all-female band. It was totally badass by the way because they were all so gorgeous and talented with a fun sound and catchy tunes to warm up the crowd. It’s not often you see an entirely female band, so I was stoked. The set didn’t seem to last long because I truly enjoyed it and because The Aces were the only opener for the show, my friends and I knew as the crew was setting up that we’d be seeing COIN in a matter of minutes, making us more antsy than before.
In the middle of “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson playing in the speakers, the lights went down and the song cut out. Illuminated on the big screen behind the band’s set up were the words “Welcome Home,” which warmed my heart immediately, as I always talk about how shows feel so much like home sometimes.
Photo by me
Suddenly the band came out and I could tell by the synth that COIN was starting with “Growing Pains,” its newest single, which I absolutely love. It was insane how high the energy was in the crowd immediately, as crowds typically take one or two songs to be fully immersed in the live atmosphere. But in this case, the crowd was all so amped to be alive and it showed as we all out-sang Chase. The crowd looked like ocean waves from all the jumping and at some points, all you could see were hands in the air as the crowd just let the music take over. I was blown away by the community instantly formed in the venue.
Without missing a beat, COIN moved into “Boyfriend” and the energy didn’t cease. I was dancing the entire time and was thankful for the room I somehow had around me. The crowd wasn’t super pushy or rude, which I loved, especially because everyone seemed to be dancing as hard as I was, enjoying themselves. Shortly after “Boyfriend,” the band threw me for a loop as they began to sing “I Don’t Wanna Dance,” a popular track for COIN and a song I thought would appear later in the set. I assumed the energy couldn’t get anymore uplifting until this song, when everyone just sang so loud to the point where Chase didn’t even hold the microphone to his own voice and instead let the crowd do the work.
The set list seemed to be flying by as I danced from track to track without a care in the world, blown away by the light show we were getting along with the music. About halfway through the set, Chase slowed things down and went to his keyboard to sing “I Would.” At first the crowd couldn’t quiet down, but as the song progressed, everyone seemed to be in a trance like I was watching him play and softly sing along. The slow pause didn’t last as the band moved into “Heart Eyes” before showing us all a new song called “Youuu,” where rainbow lights took over my view and I focused on the lyrics, which were so sickeningly sweet I couldn’t help but grin.
Photo by me
From there COIN started to play my favorite song off its second album How Will You Know if You Never Try? called “Miranda Beach.” The song seemed to last two seconds as I tried to savor it, but it sounded phenomenal, as expected. The crowd cheered so loud for so long that Chase covered his face laughing, unable to speak, which was a constant for him all night, honestly. He laughed as he said “Welcome Home,” which my favorite moment of the entire night because I could see how at home Chase truly felt with us just like we did with the band. He called us his family and it just struck a chord with me because I always go on and on about how powerful music is, so when I get to witness people feeling that power, it’s surreal. After this sweet moment, the band played “Talk Too Much,” COIN’s biggest song. He was jumping around, grabbing hands and climbing on speakers as the crowd went absolutely nuts, which was so fun to watch from afar.
“A little more?” Chase asked the crowd as he said the band had two more left for us. The crowd cheered with the sounds of “Fingers Crossed” starting up. Everyone’s hands were up with their fingers crossed in anticipation which really captured the unity we had felt all night. I laughed with pure joy at the situation I was in and the environment around me as I screamed the opening lines with Chase and my friends around me. I tried to dance harder than I had all night to take advantage of the moments I had left.
“A little more?!” Chase yelled as it went into its final song, “Feeling,” which I could barely hear over the buzzing in my ears from the crowd’s yells. Before I knew it, the song was over and the band was walking away. I could see Chase laughing like crazy over our energy. The night was over just like that and I felt a wave of melancholy wash over me as I walked into the chilly air outside.
I knew that I’d miss this night for awhile, even though I could feel my joints ache and my throat begin to itch. I wouldn’t have it any other way though because I haven’t danced that hard at a show for awhile. It just goes to show that COIN knows how to party and I was thankful to experience it all.
Cover photo by me.