Gus Dapperton // Fox Cabaret

The Fox Cabaret was set to host Gus Dapperton, Up and coming Groove Rocker from Warwick, New York. Gus reached e-fame, as so many young talented artists are doing, from his devastatingly catchy singles “Moodna, Once With Grace”, and “I’m Just Snacking” from his first EP release of the latter’s name. Self-produced and sultry, Gus is also known for his fashionably hip donning of the bowlcut, dyed green with an ambitiously elevated hairline, as well has his crisp perfect generation-Z stylishness.

The Fox is a venue which sets the mood for many, as the name suggests, cabaret-ish acts, with high ceilings, a jutting stage and disco ball strung from the ceiling. It really is the perfect place to host the show, with Gus’ nostalgic-yet-modern take on sexy groove rock.

Gus bounces on stage and begins by introducing his bandmates, including his sister playing the keyboard, all of whom he proclaims are six foot five inches tall when they aren’t. Thus, a fun air of whimsicality introduces the set which Gus continues in between and throughout. The crowd’s excitement is palpable.

When the songs begin it takes you to as if it were a serenade, forcing you, the room, to move, as if it were all, the world, the sweetheart.

It’s all just so damn sexy. Gus’s dance moves are just as vivid as in his edited music videos, and he is just so terribly nice at his banter in between songs. The whole Vancouver crowd is swaying along, which is saying a lot for the city which usually has a hard time with something as simple and easy and beautiful as dancing.

It really felt like he was enjoying the enjoyment of those in witness, a performative selflessness; or rather, that as much as Gus was performing for the audience, too was the attention of the audience a performance for him. It was a symbiotic show like that. He was there to please us, and we were there to please him. It is something that perhaps, in Gus’ younger generation is a lot stronger- the urge to been seen, noticed, a craving for attention. Though the era of social media and connectedness is exactly the thing that helps people like Gus achieve their status, it is through that same demon that one can get lost in self-consciousness and image and persona.

With Gus there is a trifecta of performance- the music, the aesthetic, and the show. None is missing and that is why he will continue to succeed.

The show comes to a close with an encore of Twist and Shout by the Beatles (my personal favourite Beatles’ song, and, let’s face it, probably Gus’ as well.)