I made the 3-hour drive back out to Kansas City yesterday and finally made it out to see Foster the People in concert. Finally, I get to talk about a Los Angeles success story! This band represents another piece of nostalgia from my otherwise abysmal high school experience. Their 2011 debut album, Torches, made its rounds and found its way into my CD collection. I listened to it often on drives to and from school. That album is home to their biggest song, “Pumped Up Kicks,” along with a few other popular hits like “Houdini” and “Helena Beat.” I think it was their ability to write catchy, fun-sounding songs that accompany often dark lyrical matters that drew me to them.
Fifteen years on since Torches, they have a surprisingly small catalogue, with a total of four albums. Fortunately, they’ve managed to maintain a faithful audience and remain under the public radar instead of fading into obscurity, unlike other artists that took my high school classmates by storm.
It took fifteen years, but I finally made it out to a show. This was my third show at the Starlight Theatre, and it has yet to disappoint as far as sound quality. I was seated on the far left side of one of the box sections, which offered some elevation that helped me see the stage better. Having a few empty chairs in front of me was certainly beneficial, too. This was also Foster the People’s first time playing Kansas City in eight years, as frontman Mark Foster pointed out at one point.
With them scheduled for an 8:4OPM start time, I took my time arriving, walking in just as their opening act was finishing up. They played around an hour and forty-five or so, their set leaning heavily on material from Torches and their 2014 album, Supermodel. That said, they covered material from all four albums. I had always liked the distinct sound of the band, but it wasn’t until last night that I grew to really notice and appreciate the musicianship. The project was founded by frontman Mark Foster in 2009, and has seen a number of lineup changes. The 2026 lineup included Foster, along with percussionist/keyboardist Isom Innis, Micah Moffett on bass/keyboards, and Aaron Steele on drums. The stage fog made it difficult to get a good look at the band members at times, but I could see enough to pick up on how heavily reliant the band’s sound is on percussion and keyboard arrangements. Prog fans, rejoice, I spotted a Moog synthesizer as part of Micah Moffett’s setup!
As far my eyes could see, the crowd demographic seemed to mostly consist of people that I’m guessing are in my age group, so likely were in high school as well when Torches came out. I spotted quite a few young children and some older adults too. I guess it makes sense. While Foster the People have had their share of big hits, they seem to have established a core audience of loyal, enthusiastic fans in their mid twenties to early thirties. I only hope that the band continues to create material and that they continue to reach and pique the interest of newer generations of music listeners. It was fun finally getting to see them in concert, and I hope to see them again soon!
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