In an industry that has been flooded with money-hungry, processed bands, it is no longer easy to find musicians who truly enjoy what they do. The Juliana Theory, a band with exceptional talent and a love for the business, is truly one of the few exceptions.

Last Friday night, Oct. 3, at Northsix in Brooklyn, New York, The Juliana Theory performed with opening bands Celebrity, Copeland and Hopesfall.

Celebrity, from Nashville, Tennessee, went on first. The band seemed very amateur and did not get much of a response from the audience. Its stage presence was by some members non-existent and by others over-acted, making the whole band seem disingenuous.

Copeland, from Atlanta, Georgia was the best of the three opening bands. The lyrics were comprehendible, as opposed to the band that followed, and all of its songs had a familiar groove to them that audience members seemed to enjoy.

Hopesfall, from North Carolina, played last before the headliner. Its music did not seem to complement The Juliana Theory, stylistically or lyrically. The lyrics were screamed rather than sung. The crowd moshed rather than swayed as they would during the following act. Perhaps The Juliana Theory chose Hopesfall as an opening band to shake the crowd up or just to make listeners fully appreciate lead vocalist Brett Detar’s flawless singing, a significant part of what makes a band likable, which Hopesfall fell short of.

Finally, nearly five hours after the doors opened, The Juliana Theory hit the stage. Its energy was so many levels higher than that of the preceding bands. Unlike the musicians that had played earlier in the evening, there was nothing fake about The Juliana Theory’s performance. It was clear that each of the band members were able to feel the music that they were playing.

Detar’s interaction with the audience made him seem really down-to-earth. He constantly raised his eyebrows, smiled at individual crowd members, and even bent down to hold hands with girls in the front row as he sang.

After “Do You Believe Me,” off of the latest album Love, Detar announced how excited the band was to be playing its first show in Brooklyn and even said he was going to buy every fan a shot. He then showed class when he said that he was only joking and that many of the fans were too young to be drinking.

Surprisingly, the venue was not very crowded and those who were there remained calm during The Juliana Theory’s performance, most likely concentrating on the wondrous talent they were witnessing. Many couples held each other tight, focusing on the sweet love lyrics, which the band is well known for.

“Some things can never be explained/why every sky still looks the same/And I wonder how my world would look without you/Some things can never be explained/like how our scars remain the same/And I wonder how the sky would look without my star,” Detar sang during the song “Constellation.”

As Detar sang he frequently smiled at his fellow band members, showing the audience that he was having a good time. Midway through the set, the band decided to debut a new song to the crowd, “Blame Shifter.”

During the song “August in Bethany,” the acoustic guitar cut out. “That’s not supposed to happen,” Detar said to the crowd. Rather than disappointing the fans, this seemed to endear Detar even more to the listeners. He then threw his pick into the crowd and sang the song without the acoustic accompaniment.

Detar showed off his piano-playing skills during the song, “Shell of a Man.” His voice was consistently perfect throughout the show, without going flat at any point.

Rather than leaving, only to return for an encore, the band decided to play straight through. “Duane Joseph” highlighted the pseudo encore.

The stellar performance was one few bands could follow. The Juliana Theory proved it has what it takes to give a tight performance to its adoring fans. Everybody, fan or not, would have enjoyed watching this band on stage.