The band CAMINO and Knox Deliver Feisty Pop-rock in Asheville, NC (SHOW REVIEW/PHOTOS)

The Band CAMINO played at Asheville’s famed Orange Peel on a drizzly Wednesday night on September 28th. Judging by the reactions of the fans, as the three-piece (supplemented by a touring bassist) bounded onto the stage, this night had been a special date in the calendar since it was  announced. The Band CAMINO is made up of Jeffery Jordan and Spencer Stewart, who share the vocals, guitars, and keys. Whilst keeping the whole thing together is drummer, Garrison Burgess. The Nashville-based band has been producing music since 2015 and has been growing a strong following on the back of several EPs and a self-titled full-length that was released last year on Elektra Records. They inhabit the same at-times overcrowded electro-pop landscape as groups such as Coin, AJR, NIGHTLY and maybe, to a lesser extent, The 1975.

As demonstrated by the  amount of sharpied Xs, scrawled on the back of hands, it was clear the majority of this crowd are of a younger demographic. This fact is emphasized further by the wall of screams that struck the eardrums as the opening act Knox took to the stage. This redheaded kid was a born star, and after announcing that this was only his fifth show ever, jaws were picked up off the floor. Asheville experienced something truly special here, as one of those “I  remember when I saw him open for…” moments. Accompanied by a tight rhythm section, he came close to stealing the show. Almost! With boundless energy and charisma for days, Knox had been envisioning this moment in his mind for years. He is becoming a star on Spotify with his song, the set closing “Sneakers,” and the crowd knew him well thanks to his daily posts on TikTok. He is clearly aware of the  importance of content because he had no less than two videographers capturing his every move. If anyone in the crowd was not aware of him when he came on stage, they surely were when he left it. 

The Band CAMINO strode on stage, took their positions, and quickly planted their guitar-led pop-rock flag to an excited room with the one-two punch of “Know it all” and “Roses”. What followed was a slick 80 or so-minute performance that was presented with road-honed precision. In their arsenal was a strong clutch of hot radio songs. Particularly enjoyable was listening to Jeffery and Spencer’s harmonizing with each other as their voices meshed together so well. This was especially evident on “Break Me”, from the 2019 e.p tryhard. With strong leads and lush harmonies, this pair can do it all. Things slowed down a little with the bloopy synth intro to “Who do you think you are”, with the kids screaming along the lyrics “how did you get so far away from who you thought you’d be at 17?,” which surely for a lot of them was probably last year.  

The talkative one of the two, Jeffery, announced that “it feels like it’s going quickly tonight”. A few songs later he announced “we won’t be doing an encore, we aren’t going to leave the stage and have you scream for us to come back on, so we are going to play two more songs and then say good night. Thank you, Asheville.” With that, the boards of the Orange Peel became a trampoline once more as the guys played “1 Last Cigarette”, which tells the story of how too much debauchery could finish you off,  

“All my friends they hate me again  

I get too drunk when I get depressed 

I lost my shit now all I got left  

Is ten missed calls and one last cigarette”

The irony being the tale is wrapped in a banger of a party tune. The night concluded with another of the group’s earlier songs, the fan favorite “Daphne Blue.” And with that, the band named after a muscle car got back on the road and set off toward the next town.

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