Rudy Wade and Jei-Rynn at The Whisky – Live Review

Rudy Wade – Photo by Jack Lue

Rudy Wade, Jei-Rynn, The Whisky, September 18, 2024

Rudy Wade and The American Zombie Tour

Rudy Wade is a Los Angeles based singer/songwriter who is currently in the midst of releasing one new song a week – and has quite a brilliant collection of music on Spotify. With an Instagram presence of 135K fans and absolutely staggering numbers on Spotify, Rudy Wade is pursuing his passion for music full time. And on the night of September 18^th at the world-famous Whisky A Go Go on the Sunset Strip, Rudy presented a exhilarating set of pop punk alternative reveries.

Along with Rudy on the American Zombie 8-day cross country tour were Ethan Gander, Demi The Daredevil, and Mitchel Dae. All four of the vocalists collaborated on the single American Zombie, and it was time to celebrate the meeting of the minds that created this absolutely infectious gem of a song. After superb sets from the dynamic touring package, Rudy Wade would take to the stage for a hometown extravaganza!

Opening with the vibrant one-two punch of Upper Hand and Wide Awake, Rudy Wade instantly captivated the late-night audiences with an absolutely memorable set of tunes. With a massive amount of talent and charisma matched by the love he obviously has for the fans, Rudy Wade’s show at the legendary Sunset Strip was nothing short of a triumph.

Rudy Wade – Photo by Jack Lue

The memorable songs kept on arriving, and Rudy original selections such as I’m Sorry, Never Liked You, and Do Or Die. Even the covers were filled with imagination, with Rudy and his band delivering spirited renditions of Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day and Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down.

Accompanying Rudy on the American Zombie journey were Robert Carpenter on drums, Liza Light on guitar, and Ryan Clure on bass – all delivering rock solid performances. Legrand even made a special appearance on the stage, unveiling stellar saxophone interludes on the song Stranded. Towards the end of the set, Trapped In A Dream was performed – a song that has reached a phenomenal 27 million streams on Spotify – and was greeted with a massive amount of appreciation by the fans!  And for a very special encore presentation, Ethan Gander, Demi The Daredevil, and Mitchel Dae joined Rudy onstage for a very lively rendition of their American Zombie creation.

The American Zombie Tour was a very special night featuring four artists we will be hearing a whole lot more about in the months ahead. An interview and Jack Lue photo shoot with Rudy Wade will be in the November 22^nd issue of Highwire Daze!

Check out the Rudy Wade Photo Gallery by Jack Lue here!!!

Jei-Rynn – Photo by Jessica Greif

Jei-Rynn

Another up-and-coming artist on the horizon is Jei-Rynn, whose stunning mixture of The Cure new wave aesthetics and My Chemical Romance style emocore is wondrous to behold. In 2022, Jei-Rynn self-released the Overreacting EP, garnering the artist a good deal of attention and a spot on the Highwire Daze Top Ten of that year. It’s been a few months since Jei-Rynn has performed a live set, and it was time to play selections from the EP as well as some brand tunes! Jei-Rynn is so impassioned about his auditory artistry, and the catchy tunes and emotional performances transfixed the early arrivals.

Opening with the pulsating refrains of Bloodsuckers with the “it’s better to cut you out” reprieves, and then merging into the brilliantly angsty Make Me, Jei-Rynn and band delivered a one-two punch of emo punk ferocity. Audiences sang along to favorites such as Sleeping (All Day) and Oxytocin. A lot of the newer songs presented an even darker and profound next chapter to Jei-Rynn’s sonic odyssey, including the stunning just released single OK, You Got Me.

In addition to the fearless and electrifying performance of Jei-Rynn, guitarist Isaiah Warlock and drummer Benzo Yungins joined the artist on this cathartic expedition. It’s been exciting to experience Jei-Rynn’s journey as an artist on the rise. Expect 2025 be the year Jei-Rynn explodes into the hearts and minds of music fans throughout the City of Angeles and beyond.

(Review by Ken Morton – Photos by Jack Lue and Jessica Greif)

Rudy Wade on Instagram
Jei-Rynn on Instagram