Perpetual Groove performed on stage of the Trustees Theater, an old palace theater, a gem left over from the 1940s Post WWII construction boom, in the heart of downtown Savannah on Friday February 1st, 2008. The venue was hosted by the Savannah College of Art and Design. The performance seemed like a sort of homecoming for the band, who several years earlier actually met in Savannah while pursuing their Bachelors of Fine Arts at the Savannah College of Art and Design.
The performance was homey and comfortable. A young local band called Optimus Prime opened for P-groove, and they had an energetic, local following cheering them on. The audience was filled with young teens and their parents during this part of the night, but as the time grew closer for Perpetual Groove to get on stage the audience began filling up with college students, and seasoned Festival/ P-groove followers. As the audience thickened so did the energy of the audience, ready to enjoy another perpetually groovy performance of dancing and lights.
There was an intermission about thirty minutes long in between bands. Because of the unique atmosphere and mind set of sensual downtown Savannah this was not a worry to any of the twenty-one and older crowd; they all shuffled out of the theater and walked to the nearest restaurants and bars pounding drinks as fast as they could, hoping to not miss a note of Perpetual Groove.
As the lights went up and Perpetual Groove finally came on stage you could feel the intensity of the audience growing. The audience began pulsating to the music in an ecstatic dance of welcoming and bliss.
The band seemed at completely at ease and laid back in the venue. They performance was incredibly calm and seemed extremely well rehearsed, without even a single glitch or moment of uncertainty. They jammed on for at least three hours playing there most well known songs, as well as covering a few songs from the early nineties.
As their set came to and end and they left the stage, the audience boomed with applause, refusing to stop until they came back on for an encore. Thankfully they came back out and played one last song to satisfy the audience.
However, the end of this set wasnt the end of the night for them. After this performance, the band and the most enthusiastic fans trekked over to Locos Grill and Pub, a couple blocks down the street, for an even more intimate performance. The band loosened up even more during the Locos after-party performance and began mingling with the audience, drinking beers, making small talk and taking requests. This truly was a night to remember for both the audience and P-groove.
