LOVE IMAGERY
Constantine Maroulis performs with the Rock of Ages Band at Taste in Red Bank, Feb. 19.
(A review by Spotlight Central. Photos by Love Imagery)
The Rock of Ages Band featuring Constantine Maroulis came and rocked the young and young at heart who stopped to party at Taste, a vibey Red Bank cafe and lounge, on Friday.
Playing pop, rock, alternative and classic dance rock, the band featured Maroulis fresh off his Thursday night appearance as a mentor on the farewell season of the television show that helped launch his career, “American Idol.”
At Taste, Maroulis and the band performed such blast-from-the-past hits as Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger,” Rick Springfield’s “Jessie’s Girl,” and Bryan Adams’ “Summer of ’69,” in addition to the song he had performed on “American Idol” the evening before, Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
In addition to Constantine, the band also featured leader Barry Habib, who originally produced “Rock of Ages” on Broadway and appeared in the film by the same name; and Bre Cade on lead and backing vocals. Cade, a Jersey girl, has made a name for herself singing with the shore’s own “Soul Sensation,” Remember Jones. She also has performed musical theater roles around the tri-state region, and will have a starring role in Exit 82 Theatre Company’s production of “Heathers” at The Strand Theater in Lakewood in April.
No stranger to theater himself, Maroulis was nominated for a 2009 Tony Award in the Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical category, for “Rock of Ages,” and also appeared on the Great White Way in “Jekyll and Hyde.” In 2015, he helped produce the latest incarnation of Broadway’s “Spring Awakening.”
Now working on a new rock album, however, Maroulis rolled out his latest singles, “Here I Come” and “She’s Just Rock and Roll,” for the local crowd who listened, sang along, danced and took selfies with this regular Jersey guy.
To these fans, Maroulis is surely an Idol through and through — someone who is comfortable being seen, as he says, by “10 million viewers one night and playing at a local bar with friends the next” — proving he’s as Jersey strong as any of the folks who made their way into this jam-packed standing-room only venue.
When asked how it feels to go from national television star to local club performer in the span of 24 hours, Constantine simply smiled and said, “Just keepin’ it real.”
For information on Maroulis’ new singles, “Here I Come” and “She’s Just Rock and Roll,” go to constantinemaroulis.com.
