Luke Wade, a contestant on season 7 of NBC’s “The Voice,” made a tour stop in Philadelphia to perform at World Cafe Live Jan. 19. Alongside Wade on the tour was a fellow “The Voice” alum and Philly native, Matt McAndrew.
Wade and McAndrew played to a full crowd upstairs at World Cafe Live. All the tables were reserved, the bar was full and there were even people (including myself) sitting on the floor in front of the stage.
McAndrew’s music is a mix of alternative rock and pop, featuring soaring vocals that earned him second place on “The Voice.” He came out just a few minutes after 8 p.m. to begin his opening acoustic set. His performance was very personable, like he was playing to a room of old friends — which I suppose he was, since many of his friends and family members were in attendance.
McAndrew started his set with a warning that he had not quite mastered his new loop machine, but after a few tries he got it to work and began playing. His acknowledged his jumbled-up setlist: “I write a setlist down before the show, then I get up here and do what I want.”
He performed all the tracks from his most recent EP, “Rush in Slowly,” including fan-favorites “Wasted Love,” “Bones” and “Carried Away.” He even took requests from the audience members and performed some of the most popular songs that he did on “The Voice.” Some of these covers included his audition song, Christina Perri’s “A Thousand Years” and Damien Rice’s “The Blower’s Daughter.”
After his set, McAndrew met with some of his fans before catching up with his friends and family. Shortly after that, Wade came out with the three other members of his band.
Wade, a Texas native, has a style that’s a mixture of soul, Americana and singer-songwriter. Wade just released his album, “Only Ghosts” Jan. 13, and it has been climbing on the singer-songwriter charts.
Wade’s performance was very soulful. He performed all the songs on his new album including the new single, “Three Days,” and a song that he co-wrote with McAndrew called “Passenger Side.” Before each song, he gave the audience a brief story about what inspired him to write the song which allowed the audience to get a clearer view into his world.
During his set, the audience sitting on the floor got up and started to dance. After his set was finished, the audience begged for an encore. Wade came onstage for the encore and played a solo song, and then his band joined him for one last song.
After Wade’s set, he walked out to his merch table and made himself available to any fan that wanted to say hello, take a picture or get an autograph. A long line of fans formed in the front of the building as he made it a point to meet with every fan. Both Wade’s and McAndrew’s performances were solid and it was a treat to see them live.