Alanna Gillis

Opinions Editor

amg7393@psu.edu

On Monday, November 15, 2021, cinematic rock band STARSET, played a show in Harrisburg PA. The show was part of their 2021 “HORIZONS” tour to celebrate their newest album by the same name, which was released on October 22, 2021. 

The group, boasting more than 2 million monthly listeners on Spotify alone, calls themselves a cinematic rock band for a reason. Their music sounds like it would be straight out of a sci-fi movie, and their concert demonstration only furthers this point. 

Their demonstration was split into two phases, with an intermission in the middle for a set and costume change. The first half of the show opened in an incredibly interesting and exciting way. A white screen was dropped between the audience and the stage, and a slideshow set to the mainly-instrumental first track on “HORIZONS”, “UNVEILING THE ARCHITECTURE”. At the end of the song, the slideshow faded to an image of the band’s hollow star logo, and singer Dustin Bates stepped onto stage, his shadow appearing atop the star. The crowd promptly lost their minds as the screen was dropped and Bates and the other members of the band started the second song of the album, “THE BREACH”. 

However, STARSET did not only play songs from their most recent album. They also harkened back to some fan favorites, including “My Demons”, which went platinum on the same day as this concert, according to Livewire. Other songs played were from their previous album, “DIVISIONS”, which was named one of the 50 best rock albums of 2019. 

As far as showmanship, STARSET put on an incredible show. The entire demonstration was orchestrated, without feeling stiff. Bates, along with the other members of the band: Ron DeChant on bass, keyboard and backing vocals, Brock Richards on guitars and backing vocals, Adam Gilbert on drums and percussion, Siobhán Richards on violin and keyboards and Zuzana Engererova on cello, did an incredible job at keeping the crowd entertained. 

Aside from multiple call-and-response sections where Bates had the crowd help him sing, the group also shared their appreciation to be able to tour again and thanked their fans for supporting their music journey. 

As far as set and costume design go, it was clear that a lot of time and effort had been put into making the demonstration a great time. The first half of the show had the group in more subtle costume choices, mainly long black dusters, masks, and gloves. In the second half of the show, everyone save Bates and the string players donned the group’s signature look, the white space suits. Set-wise, the lights and fog jets were timed to be in-sync with the music, which made the experience even more immersive.  

STARSET is on tour in the U.S. until December 18, 2021, where they will play a show in their home state of Ohio. Their final show in PA for this tour is on December 1, 2021, at the Roxian Theater in Pittsburgh. If you have the time and can get tickets, I highly recommend going. It’s a concert you won’t regret!