The Breeze Blows McPhail’s Down: PC Students Shine in Local Band

by Jack Downey '23 on February 21, 2023
A&E Co-Editor


Arts & Entertainment


Last year, to kick off the spring semester, the Board of Programmers held an event in McPhail’s featuring The Breeze. Showcasing two PC students, Jordan McBride ’23 on keys and Julia Carson ’25 on vocals, the band delivered an electric performance that had everyone on their feet and dancing. They covered genres ranging from rock to pop to country, and they pulled each one off perfectly.

Recognizing how successful the event was, BOP brought The Breeze back for a sequel on Jan. 20, and they once again knocked it out of the park. They tore through songs such as Paramore’s “Still Into You,” Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats,” and Olivia Rodrigo’s “Good 4 U.” The crowd was constantly moving and singing along.

Throughout the course of the performance, each band member displayed an incredible amount of enthusiasm and energy. Even McBride was jumping up and down behind his keyboards. This only enhanced the crowd’s admiration, as they often jumped and danced with the band as they played.

The band ended the main portion of the concert with a roaring version of “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey. While this song is constantly covered, The Breeze truly did it justice. It had power and passion behind it, and when it ended, the audience immediately demanded more. The band responded with performances of Van Halen’s “Eruption,” Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird.” The latter is often considered a joke song, mainly because errant concertgoers love to request it no matter who is playing. However, like with “Don’t Stop Believin’,” The Breeze took the classic and did it more than justice.

Carson shared lead vocals with her brother, Ben, adding an extra sense of dynamism to the first portion of the song. Prior to the second verse, McBride performed a masterful keyboard solo. While initially it was meant to be a short display before the vocals resumed, the crowd continued cheering him on, and the band happily obliged. Later on came everybody’s favorite part of the song: the guitar solo. As the tempo changed, the air was charged as everybody let go of their last vestiges of energy and demolished the dance floor. The band tore through the rest of the song like a runaway train before ending and coming to a crazy finish. With that, the audience went back to their dorms, happy and ready for more.

And more is about to come. As astute audience members have noticed, there are various flyers posted around giving the details of The Breeze’s next show. They will be taking the stage at The Met in Pawtucket, RI, on Feb. 3. Joining them will be St. Joe and the Dorms as well as The Grapes, formerly known as Jack Wilmot and Co. The concert is sure to be as electric as the most recent one in McPhail’s, if not more. The last Met show was a huge success, so don’t miss the next one!