Bloomington’s up and coming pop rock group plays to 14,000 online fans

Candlelight flickered across the reflective faces of several acoustic guitars, lined up among box seats, microphones and a black grand piano. About 50 people sat in a semicircle in front of the set, campfire style, waiting patiently for their boys to take the stage.

“Hello internet people,” frontman Michael Hall said, welcoming not only the physical attendees but the endless online world tuning in through Facebook and Stickam to South Jordan’s live acoustic show Thursday.

The performance, promoted by the Stickam live video streaming site, was the first live show the group has been able to do since landing their record deal with Island Def Jam this past summer.

“We were trying to come up with ways to show people that we were out there playing,” drummer Jesse Feister said. “So we wanted to do something online. We have all these online fans anyway, fans all over the world that have supported us through southjordanmusic.com. We wanted to find a way to support them and streaming an acoustic show seemed like a good idea.”

To confirm their hypothesis they posted a comment on Facebook asking their fans for their opinions.

“We announced on Facebook that if 300 people ‘like’ this post, we are going to do a live show,” Feister said. “We wanted to really see if people would actually watch. We knew that there were people who were paying attention enough to click a button on Facebook.”

It was these online comments, and several on the group’s Twitter that caught the attention of the Stickam programming director, who contacted the group in regards to promoting the show.

Stickam featured the performance on the main page of their website and also provided technical support for the broadcast.

“There were a lot of different factors that we were working with,” lead guitarist Eric Brengle said. “We had to perform a live show and do a video feed and get a recording out of it. It takes a lot of planning to get everything out of it and effortlessly connect with everyone.”

Their efforts were not in vain. By the end of the show it was announced that there were 14,000 viewers watching through Stickam.

Several online viewers also participated in a contest to win a South Jordan t-shirt, the winner of which was announced through the broadcast.

“It was definitely a new vibe trying to interact with people through a camera that I couldn’t see while keeping the people in front of me entertained,” Hall said. “It was definitely a lot of fun and a learning experience.”

Laughing, pianist Bobby Campbell added to Hall’s sentiments.
“We thought we might have a 100, let alone 2,000,” Campbell said. “We didn’t know if the stream was even going to work. It was pretty amazing.”

South Jordan played a four-song set for their online fans, complete with between song group banter. Upon concluding the broadcast they revealed a special treat for the select group of Bloomington fans able to make it to the performance.

“At first the whole idea of the stream was to broadcast to people on the internet then we got to thinking about it and we were like, we’re going back to Bloomington and there are so many people there who support us,” Brengle said. “Let’s give something back to them too, and that’s kind of when we started to extended invitations to people.”

The group performed a song compiled specially for this audience, consisting of clips of Lady Gaga songs, and other remixed popular hits. Fans were encouraged to sing along, which many did with pride. A short rap and dance by guitarist Mike Chan had fans slapping their knees in bursts of hysterical laughter.

 One sung line, “They call me Herman Wells, cause I can make your bed rock,” struck a special chord with Bloomington groupies.

“We tried to throw in the Bloomington artifacts that people will immediately understand,” Hall said. “And Herman Wells making your bed rock is pretty. ...Well, everyone pictures that.”

The tone and quality of the final number revealed South Jordan’s true feelings towards the attendees of their show.

“You get a different kind of show when you have people who are not only there because they enjoy the music, but because they cared about you before the music,” Brengle said. “It’s really amazing, and I don’t really know how to describe it actually. It went so well, and it was so much easier because we could just be ourselves, and in a way you could just forget the camera was there.”

They left their set, encouraging audience members to assist in blowing out the excessive number of candles and promising to return to Bloomington on their next tour.

Meanwhile the boys will continue to reside in Nashville, Tenn. working on the material for their first album through Island Def Jam records.

“A lot of writing then we’ll start looking around for producers later this winter and hopefully get in the studio early next year,” Brengle said.

The contract signed with Island Def Jam stipulates the production of one complete album, funded by the company and up to four successive albums based on the success of the first release with promotional assistance.

Uprooted from their college atmospheres, with two members withdrawing before completing their majors, the six members of the group have come together as more than just a band.

“It’s great, it’s literally like having another family,” Brengle said. “It’s nice to have that big of a family to be on the road with, especially when you’re away from your own family and friends.”

Sitting in the mixing room of the studio where Chan, Campbell and Hall recorded the first manifestations of South Jordan, the group reflected on the individuality of each member, poking fun at each other like brothers.

“We do fight a lot, and six guys in a band is six hearts to please,” Hall said. “Everyone wants a good product, and everyone has their own musical background and dreams for our sound and our direction.”

“If it wasn’t for music I’m not sure that I ever would have connected with this diverse a group of guys,” Brengle said in response to Hall’s comment. “But it all just comes back to good songs, good friendships, and to be honest I learn more from them than I feel like I contribute.”

“I think the diversity in the band is what sets us apart,” Hall added. “We have six guys and we’re all really, really different but we get it done and we love to come together and everyone throws in a piece and it just comes out as South Jordan.”