IMAG¡NARY FRIENDZ w/ goodfellas & The Button Ups• May 26, 2022• Kilby Court
Reviewed and Photographed by Mallorie Lerman
When I arrived at Kilby Court on Thursday, I noticed a mass of people waiting to get in line into the venue. Vaccine cards and negative covid tests were being checked for admittance. The line was long but it moved steadily. The lineup for the night would be full of some great local artists. The show started off with the local band the Button Ups. They were followed by goodfellas. And the headliner of the evening would be IMAG¡NARY FRIENDZ. We have been trying to cover one of their shows for a while. For one reason or another, it hadn’t worked out. But it finally happened and we were excited to finally see these guys.
The Button Ups
The Button Ups are an alternative band with a beachy feel that began releasing their music out in 2020. With Brennan Cook singing lead vocals, Kelton Sterett on guitar and vocals, Eli Richey on bass, Caden “beans” Cook on guitar, and Papa Dave on drums. This five-piece band got the crowd swaying in place with their sentimental hit “here’s to 21”. I’m excited to see where their music takes them.
goodfellas
Up next in the lineup were the goodfellas. This young and funky alternative band played a groovy and bouncy setlist. They seemed to take inspiration from the musical styles of the 60s and 70s. Their hippy and mellow sounds got an incredible reaction from the Kilby Court crowd. Playing some of their fun songs like “let’s disappear” and “fall into space”.
IMAG¡NARY FRIENDZ
After two incredible opening bands, IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ took the stage as Thursday night’s headliners. The crowd was super excited for them to be playing. Everyone from the edge of the stage to the back was dancing or swaying in some way to the beat. They got the venue buzzing with excitement by doing a cover of the classic hit “Dani California” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. This three piece band hails from North Ogden and consists of Felipe Moya (vocals/guitar) Carter Lang (bass) and Ethan Kearns (drums).
IMAG¡NARY FRIENDZ was enthralling with their energy while performing. I could see why they had so many loyal fans singing every word of their songs back to them. After playing their song “Slow Motion”, Felipe made a point of saying it was the greatest reaction to a song they’ve ever had at a live performance. Celebrating Felipe’s birthday, the whole crowd at Kilby Court sang “Happy Birthday” to the lead singer. It’s the small interactions like these at this venue that make it so intimate and such a good time!
IMAG¡NARY FRIENDZ is a band on their way up. They’ve played a lot of shows here in Utah and people are starting to get word of this really fun band. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them playing more and more headlining dates. Be sure to check them out the next time they play live.
IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ will be playing at the Gallivan Center on July 2! For more information and tickets click here.
