Four members of the six-person band attended MSU.

Memphis, Mich. resident Amanda Lowery, who came out to see Gunnar & the Grizzly Boys, said the hour-and-a half drive was worth it to see a band that embodies such a powerful stage presence.

“It’s their live performance, the energy that comes off the stage when their performing, how they sway back and forth and all the little tricks they do, that’s what gets you pumping,” Lowery said. “If I didn’t know their music and they weren’t doing that, I’d probably just be standing there. But since they’re so energetic, I want to get energetic with them.”

Gunnar & the Grizzly Boys lead vocalist Gunnar Nyblad said the group’s stage presence isn’t rehearsed, it’s just something that developed in time.

“I think you just play enough shows and you just kind of get it,” Nyblad said. “I think we just have fun. We have a lot of fun.”

The Grand Rapids based-band played their first show in November of 2009 at The Intersection in Grand Rapids. Since then, Nyblad said a few things have changed, but the feeling they get when performing has remained the same.

“We were really nervous, we played really fast and when you look back in it, we weren’t that good, but it felt awesome,” Nyblad said. “I always wanted a band, I always wanted to be able to play my songs to people so that felt impeccable and it still does to this day. People are singing and they’re listening, it feels good.”

Acoustic guitar and vocalist Joe Rood said first starting out in the band and performing in an a constant liquor-brimmed environment enabled him to develop a hindering addiction.

“I was always drunk, always drinking,” Rood said.

After realizing the issues that alcohol brings he got stronger, wiser and sober and has been for eight months.

“I don’t remember what it feels like to be drunk,” Rood said. “I don’t remember what it’s like to be hungover, I used to just keep drinking because I was always hungover. That’s not the case anymore.”

Rood said he’s made changes to his life and he and his band have grown from listening to the advice of those who had once been in their shoes.

“Kid Rock has given us great advice, people like that have sat us down and said, ‘This is something that you need to do,’ and every time we’ve listened and did it… it worked,” Rood said. “He seriously looked at us and said ‘You guys have potential,’ and we fed off that — we took a lot of advice, but we’ve still stayed ourselves.”

Joining Gunnar & the Grizzly Boys onstage were opening acts Wreckless and The Devil in his Brandy.

Josh Rickett, bass player for Wreckless, the second band in the lineup, described their music as “party country” and said the past women in their lives inspired a majority of their songs.

“Ex-girlfriends, a lot of the songs have ex-girlfriends in there,” Rickett said. “I’d say that’s a strong point in our music.”

Derek Thocker, harmonica, electric guitar and mandolin player for The Devil in his Brandy, who went on first, said this was their first time playing at The Loft and has came really far since their bonfire beginnings.

“Originally we started to just play bonfires,” Thocker said. “Next thing you know, we were writing songs to record. Then we decided let’s just play one local show, and it just continued to grow from there.”

Thocker’s mother, Brenda Saines, who swayed and proudly sang along during her son’s performance, said she attends every show of the band and said the bond they have is something special.

“They love this,” Saines said. “It’s something they can carry with them for the rest of their lives.”