Urban Heat at the Handlebar

I honestly didn't know what to expect. I saw YNICORNS was opening for someone at The Handlebar and that got my attention so I went to the show. By the end of the night, I had a new favorite band.

I am a child of 80s music but when most people hear that, they think hair bands in spandex. Not that there's anything wrong with that but my 80s tastes were more R.E.M., The Cure and New Order. Here's how Urban Heat's Jonathan Horstmann describes their sound.

"I always say we exist at the intersection of synth-pop, post-punk, and darkwave.... The way I describe it to my mom is, if you took Depeche Mode, Joy Division, Nine Inch Nails, but then also Cyndi Lauper and like Tears for Fears.... It's kind of taking the easy road to say it's 80s music because it's very much not as well" - Jonathan Horstmann

Oh my god yes! How could I not love this band!

There are so many things that make this band special. They bring so much energy to the stage, especially Horstmann flying around, even at one point literally running up and jumping off the back wall.

His distinctive, deep voice is mesmerizing and adds weight to the lyrics. And speaking of the lyrics, the song-writing and subject matter takes what could be a band imitating synth-pop bands of the past to a different level and makes them not an imitation but a relevant, influential modern powerhouse!

I've been playing their stuff ever since that night and love it. The only complaint is, they are still a relatively new band so there's not enough music! 😀 Can't wait to see what they do and where they take this beautiful sound. Catch them if you can!