Grace Potter & The Nocturnals Hot Summer Night

The pit at the Congress Theater was starting to chill over. Snowflakes snuck in the doors to the side of the stage as the last act unloaded their equipment. The lights dimmed and the Nocturnals strolled to their spots.

Then, Grace Potter strutted to the stage in silver high heels and a short, slinky black dress that left little to the imagination. She strapped on her acoustic guitar, and immediately started belting out her unique blend of smoky, sultry psychedelic blues and suddenly it felt like the summer again.

The blonde bombshell burned through an energetic setlist that featured the begging to be sung-a-long to "Medicine," and a song I had looked forward to all week - and it lived up to my expectations - her cover of Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit." Potter's prowess across multiple instruments was trumped only by her beautiful, booming voice. Eventually she ditched the heels, and threw herself to the music, whipping her hair and prancing around barefoot.

Grace and the rest of the band were brimming with even more confidence than usual throughout the entire show. Perhaps its because they already knew they were about to blow up; The night prior the group taped a segment for VH1's Divas Salute to the Troops, that featured a Top Gun introduction to their hit Ohh La La. When it aired Sunday night, their album skyrocketed to number one on iTunes Top 100 albums list, leaving a wake of Beatles albums in their midst.

A passionate group of artists overflowing with talent, this is a band on the fast track to superstardom, and not to be missed. With growing popularity and exstensive tour dates, you have no excuse to not stay up all night with Grace Potter & The Nocturnals.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="Photo courtesy of Joshua Mellin"][/caption]

Grace Potter & The Nocturnals tour dates:

12.09 Syracuse, NY @ Westcott Theater

12.10 Northampton, MA @ Pearl Street Ballroom

12.11 Portland, ME @ State Theatre

New Years 2010

12.28 Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground

12.29 Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground

12.31 Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground

2011 dates:

1.13 Covington, KY @ Madison Theatre

1.14 St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant

1.15 Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom

1.16 Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater

1.17 Davenport, IA @ Redstone Room

1.20 Bozeman, MT @ Emerson Cultural Center

1.22 Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory

1.26 Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory

1.27 Seattle, WA @ Crocodile Cafe

1.28 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom

1.29 Vancouver, BC @ Venue

2.01 Santa Barbara, CA @ Soho Restaurant & Music Club

2.02 Scottsdale, AZ @ Martini Ranch

2.03 San Diego, CA @ House of Blues

2.04 Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre

2.05 San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore

2.10 Telluride, CO @ Sheridan Opera House

2.11 Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre

2.17 Houston, TX @ House of Blues

2.18 Dallas, TX @ Huse of Blues

2.19 Austin, TX @ Antones

2.20 New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues

2.23 Birmingham, AL @ WorkPlay Theatre

2.24 Nashville, TN @ Cannery Ballroom

2.25 Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse

2.26 Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse

3.03 Jacksonville, FL @ Florida Theatre

3.04 St. Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre

3.05 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room

3.06 Orlando, FL @ Plaza Theatre

3.10 New York, NY @ Irving Plaza

3.12 Washington, D.C. @ 9:30 Club

Tickets