For NEEDTOBREATHE, Three is the Magic Number.

For NEEDTOBREATHE, three is the magic number.

Early this year, the Grammy-nominated band from South Carolina announced their “All the Feels” tour, an all-encompassing trek across the U.S split into three parts: Under the stars, Electric and Acoustic. Marketed as “More Songs, More Ways”, the twenty-plus-city hurdle might be their biggest feat yet. Three also marks the amount of times the contemporary Christian band will have visited Birmingham in 2017.

Fans got their first taste at the third annual Sloss Music and Arts Festival, or Sloss Fest, where many braved the pouring rain to hear front man Bear Reinhart’s raspy croon. Despite the unflattering weather, festival goers showed unwavering support. Luckily for avid fans, the following shows would be indoors.

The Magic City is one of the few repeat stops on the tour, having both electric and acoustic sets, respectively. Oct 10, NTB returned for their sold-out “Electric” performance at the historic Alabama Theatre, bringing newcomer Billy Raffoul as their opener.

Kicking off the show, the 22-year-old warmed the crowd with his unique, rough-hewn sound. Often compared to music greats Neil Young and Jeff Buckley, Raffoul rocked the house with ease, singing notable tracks “Driver” and “Dark Side Door.”

It didn’t take very long for the headliners to follow-up Raffoul’s rousing performance. Taking the stage, a little after 8:30 p.m., Reinhart and company entered in style.

The stage darkened and a spotlight focused on a solo mic stand with a cowboy hat perched on top while the eerie sounds of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You” flooded the theatre. As the song faded out, Reinhart took to the stage, collecting his hat from the stand, and launched into “Don’t Bring That Trouble”, “Money and Fame” and “No Excuses” from their recent album H A R D L O V E.

Reinhart took breaks to dialogue with the audience, promising them an energy-packed night and some good Southern fun. Throughout their twenty-three-song set, NTB cruised through a bevy of fan fan-favorites like “Washed by the Water”, “Feet Don’t Fail Me Now”, “Something Beautiful.”

NTB closed the show out with “Stand By Me”, a chunk of “Lay Em’ Down”, “Hard Love”, “A Girl Named Tennessee”, and “The Outsiders.”  However, Reinhart and company quickly returned to the stage for an encore performance of their biggest hits “Wasteland”, “Brother” (sans Gavin Degraw) and an unplugged version of “Cages” where all the band members shared one mic.

Even after a heartfelt and energy-infused performance, the South Carolina ensemble isn’t done with Birmingham just yet. On Dec. 16, the boys will return for an acoustic set smack dab across the street at the equally historic Lyric Theatre.