RUEL - Theatre of Living Arts - NIGHT ONE SOLD OUT - 6/17 | Live Music Review

I grew up going to the TLA and on concert days, you’d find me and my friends perched up against the sides of buildings on South Street waiting for the venue doors to be opened. Flash forward nearly a decade plus later and I am back at the TLA, with my camera, seeing the familiar faces and energy of RUEL’s fans as they await the opening of the doors. It’s a magical experience and a first for me as I patiently (and semi-awkwardly) wait in line. I time the processional of ticket scanning and security checks from the time I got in line to the time I was in front of the doors and it was a solid 32 mins later. I had walked in. I looked up today’s artists, RUEL and (to my wonderful surprise) Sam MacPherson, and was thrilled with the photos and videos coming from fellow photographers who have photographed this tour before me. I knew it was going to be a good night. I just had to get out of my head. Through the back of the sold out crowd I went and waited until the time the lights dimmed and the crowd cheered. It was explosive. It was louder than life. 

We had caught Sam MacPherson back a few weeks ago when he played a headlining show at the World Cafe Live and I was so excited to see him again. This time he walked out solo with just a guitar and his swooning vocals; he jumped into all of his most revered songs. How Do You Dress For the Rain had the crowd interactions going hard and echoed throughout the spacious venue and songs like Forget I Exist, Last Minute, Backseat (All I Got) and No Bad Memories made for a wonderful night. The crowning moment during Sam’s live set was that he covered a song that he had only played once before live and that was Frank Ocean’s “Thinkin’ Bout You” and it made the entire crowd swoon amidst the unison singalong coming from every part of the room. It was definitely a great tone set for the two night residency here in Philadelphia. 

The crowd let out a deafening cheer when RUEL’s keyboardist, Beau Golden and drummer, Sisa Koroi took the stage and the sounds of an announcement with a stern request looking for RUEL and how the organization 4th Wall was searching out for him. I really find that introductions like this add a special level of excitement to any live show as it keeps you on your toes looking for clues and wondering what’s going to happen next. The theme throughout the show was pretty much cohesive with the theming of throughout his debut album 4th Wall  and his life performance did not disappoint. RUEL sauntered around the stage wearing a varsity type sleeveless cardigan with a burgundy tie and corduroy pants to  pull the look together. I can definitely describe his live performance as energetic, full of zest, and high-octane. You’ll be dancing and singing along as evidenced by the sold out crowd’s energy throughout the entire show. It was my first time seeing RUEL perform and hearing his debut album 4th Wall live and it sounded majestic. Best of all, the fans made the show that better by giving off the best vibes.

He did sprinkle in a few covers of “I GOTTA FEELING” and then a JVKE and One Direction song. The way he threw in parts of the 1D song “Night Changes’ made my heart swell like The Grinch when his heart was warming up for the first time, in a long time. I just couldn’t believe how far photography has gotten me to where I am photographing some epic artists, in venues that I grew up going to. Onwards and upwards is my mantra and the main reason I keep going as a music photographer and creative artist. 

RUEL Setlist: June 17, 2023, Theatre of Living Arts Night One 

See the full gallery here.

he tour is currently in Chicago, Illinois at the House of Blues and will be concluding the North American leg on July 7th at the Shrine Expo Hall in Los Angeles, CA before embarking on the South American leg (just announced) and European/UK leg in the fall of this year.