Stephen Sanchez
Article by Brittany Ormiston
Travel back in time with us to 1958...Stephen Sanchez & The Moon Crests made their debut on the Connie Co Show in Indianapolis. The band emerged on stage wearing their Sunday best, and the host, Connie Co, gave a warm welcome to Stephen with his delightful introduction. Stephen waltzed onto the stage wearing a blue suit jacket with a white pocket square in the breast pocket. His enchanting aura drew the attention of every individual in the amphitheater, and it did not cease for the remainder of the evening.
Stephen made a euphoric entrance with ‘Evangeline’ as his exquisite vibrato charmed the crowd instantly. His 50s dance moves were nothing short of perfection, and you could not help but smile ear-to-ear as he glided across the stage. During ‘I Need You Most Of All,’ Stephen’s perfect pitch was accompanied by playing guitar and high kicking at the same exact time with impeccable balance. The audience loved every single second of it. “It’s been a long time. It’s good to see you,” said Stephen into the microphone with a warm tone. The emotions continued running high with the performance of ‘The Other Side.’ The chorus was electrifying with a falsetto during the outro to send the crowd into a frenzy. Truth be told everyone is still buzzing about it days later.
“Alright Everwise [Amphitheater], did you come to dance?” asked Stephen as the drum loop of ‘Oh, Pretty Woman’ by Roy Orbison echoed through the venue. The crowd clapped to the beat during the chorus, and a fan in the pit threw him a rose to which he caught midair. The instrumentation was dialed back a bit for the next portion of the show to truly let Stephen’s vocals shine. The sincerity displayed in his voice during ‘Hey Girl’ and ‘The Pool’ deserves to be noted. “I can’t escape the thought of you, so // Would you trust me to catch you at the bottom of the pool?” sang Stephen as the indigo lighting accented the track. Connie Co emerged back on stage at a desk, and asked Stephen “would you rather” and “this or that” questions during a sit-down segment. He removed his tie, and slicked back his hair in preparation. Let’s just say his answers had us all swooning.
The audience was in for a treat as Stephen performed two unreleased tracks, ‘What Love Did To Us’ and ‘Still Burning.’ He wrote the first track prior to this tour, and holds it close to his heart. While sitting on the edge of his chair, he strummed the acoustic guitar so delicately as fans lit the amphitheater up with phone flashlights. “...Great music has the power to touch our hearts,” mentioned Connie Co. Stephen may be entering a new era with ‘Still Burning’ and its rock influences. His bone-chilling vocals were certainly one of a kind. After jumping off of Connie’s desk to end ‘High,’ Stephen closed out the show with his most-streamed song ‘Until I Found You’ and the infamous ‘Shake.’ The crowd was dancing all about during the Elvis-inspired track as they received a taste of true rock n’ roll.
Connie Co said it best when he used the words crooner and sultry to describe Stephen Sanchez. He is easy on the eyes, but his old soul and gentle demeanor create a calmness in the midst of all storms. There’s just something about Troubadour Sanchez & The Moon Crests that will go down in history…
Everwise Amphitheater in Indianapolis, IN on September 24, 2024
Photos by Everly Ormiston
