This month, Common Grounds is featuring four artists, three of whom will be performing on the coffeehouse’s stage for the first time. Folk artist John Moreland, who played at Common Grounds in 2015, will be kicking off February’s concert series Friday.
Taylor Torregrossa, venue manager and promoter for Common Grounds, said she chose a lineup of mostly newcomers because she felt the venue was in need of some fresh faces.
“I felt like Common Grounds was kind of in this rut of bringing the same artists over and over again,” Torregrossa said. “So I’m really excited about this semester because we have a lot of brand new artists lined up.”
Following John Moreland, the rock ‘n’ roll band Wilderado will play a show on Feb. 17. Although this will be the first time the band’s four members have performed together at Common Grounds, lead vocalist Max Helmerich is no stranger to this stage.
“The very first show I every played was at Common Grounds, believe it or not,” Helmerich said. “It’ll be fun to be back in a completely different light.”
Wilderado’s song “Morning Light” currently has over 1.6 million plays on Spotify. Helmerich said he is particularly looking forward to sharing this tune with Baylor students because he wrote the lyrics for it when he attended Baylor.
The day after Wilderado, Common Grounds will feature indie rock band Eisley. Torregrossa said she was particularily thrilled to book this show because she has been a fan of the band from a young age.
“I was really excited to bring Eisley here,” Torregrossa said. “That show will change your life.”
According to Eisley’s website, the band will release its fifth album, “I’m Only Dreaming,” the day before their Common Grounds concert.
On Feb. 24, New-Zealand based artist Strahan will share his Christian folk music with the Common Grounds crowd. Strahan said he thinks of his songs as psalms that deal with themes of love, hope, suffering, and longing.
“My faith is everything,” Strahan said. “It’s the seed that all the songs grow from.”
Not only will this concert be Strahan’s first time performing at Common Grounds, but it will also be his first trip to Texas. Strahan is also set to perform shows in Houston and Tyler the same week.
Strahan said he wants his audience at Common Grounds to hear his music and understand that everyone belongs in the kingdom of Heaven.
“In my show, I would hope that people come away with the sense of how our identity can be found in love and in hope,” Strahan said.
The final entertainer scheduled to perform in February is the Collection, a folk band made up of up to fifteen musicians playing a wide range of instruments. Torregrossa said, the Collection would appeal to fans of the band, The Oh Hellos.
“That is going to be such a fun, high-energy show,” Torregrossa said.
Tickets are still available online at https://cgwaco.ticketfly.com for all five February concerts, and prices range from $5 to $30 depending on the artist.
