Adding magic to the city

The members of Miami based music group Magic City Hippies know that when you are performing you have to get bodies moving and people dancing. Lead guitarist and singer Robby Hunter said, “We’re always out to entertain people. Miami is a nightlife city, people are oriented towards staying out all night. Anything you do has to make them dance.” On Monday, Feb. 10, the band provided a perfect environment for dancing the night away at downtown Bozeman’s dynamic Rialto Theater.

The Rialto doors swung open at 7 p.m., and soon after, Tim Atlas, a Los Angeles-based artist took the stage to get the crowd fired up. Atlas is known for his unique brand of R&B-infused indie pop and has been compared to bands like Toro y Moi and Rex Orange County.

After Atlas’ performance, the lights came on and the crowd talked softly to each other, eagerly anticipating the show. A few minutes later, the lights dimmed and a giant sign reading “MCH” lit up in a neon pink glow, and the crowd started to stir.

As the music began to play, the audience cheered and the band members appeared on stage in a cloud of fog and started to jam. Soon, indie-funk music reached the ears of standing in attendance. Their music transformed a cold, dark Bozeman night into a serene, sun kissed beach. The music mixed with the sway of the crowd and the pink lighting truly made the Rialto seem like a summer, poolside paradise.

When the band left the stage at the end of the night, the crowd cheered and begged for more songs. Looking to please the crowd, the Magic City Hippies returned to play their hit song, “Hush,” and a remix of Travis Scott’s 2016 song, “Goosebumps.” As the concert ended and audience members flooded out of the Rialto, they were swept out of the summer paradise that the Magic City Hippies had provided, and stepped into the harsh winter weather of Bozeman.

Magic City Hippies are truly one of a kind and it seems the band members like that fact. “People always say it’s hard to find another band we sound like,” drummer and producer Pat Howard said. “I’m proud of that — any song could be a single.”

Be sure to check out Magic City Hippies newest album, “Modern Animal,” that came out in, 2019. According to their website, the album gained inspiration from “irresistible Tame Impala rhythm and a safari of synthesizers.”