LIVE: Mondo Cozmo Shows Philly What Not Giving Up Looks Like
"This is what not giving up looks like," Josh Ostrander (AKA Mondo Cozmo) addressed the crowd at Philadelphia's Union Transfer venue, who had been chanting "Mondo! Cozmo!" before the singer and his band took the stage. Ostrander's observation had come a few songs into his hour long headline set, which already had the dedicated crowd singing back his songs like "Thunder" and "Higher."
It's been quite the year for Ostrander; supporting UK band Bastille on an arena tour, putting out a debut album, and playing over 17 festivals, including Lollapalooza. Before this whirlwind of success that has been a long time coming, Ostrander admits to the Philadelphia venue that he wrote all these songs in his bedroom when he thought he was done with music. In addition to seeing Mondo Cozmo perform some of their favorite songs live, the crowd was able to witness someone living their dream on a final attempt, which made the show even more special.
The band and Ostrander also exuded a strong sense of camaraderie despite their short time playing together, which added another dynamic to the show. Seeing Ostrander and his bandmates work the entire stage, jamming together, and even all hugging at the end of the show added a personable layer. His bassist and guitarist at one point even leaned on each other while playing, which ended up with the bassist laying on stage to finish the song. Besides the viral Mondo Cozmo song "Shine," which has racked up over 5 million Spotify streams, another set highlight included the band's cover of "Atlantic City" during the encore. One of the support bands, Illinois, came out to lend a hand during the encore, which only amplified the sense of friendship on the stage. When the set wrapped up around 11PM, the entire crowd left the venue with a smile of their face.
Make sure you catch Mondo Cozmo when he comes back to a city near you. Find all of the upcoming tour dates here, and check out our photo gallery of the gig below!
