If a band is going to play a gig on Valentine’s Day, it ought to be in a city it cares for and one that reciprocates the sentiment.
Real Estate loves Baltimore, and the Charm City loves it right back.
That was plain to see on Valentine’s Day, as the Ridgewood, NJ-born indie rock outfit pleased a packed Ottobar with a loaded set featuring some of its most celebrated songs, deep cuts, new favorites, and a surprise cover, too. All night long, band members professed their appreciation for a city they’ve been playing since their early days together.
Sold out long in advance, Real Estate spoke of its “high hopes” upon taking the stage at the storied North Howard Street venue, and the group was welcomed by the titillated cheers of a crowd looking to be unwound on a romantic holiday.
Real Estate’s music is known to do that. Launched by a group of high school buddies back in 2008, it’s been consistent with a pleasantly blurred resonance across its six studio albums and three EPs. The band’s been out on the road since late January and until this past week on what it’s called The More Tour.
Listen to Real Estate’s sixth and latest studio album, Daniel, via Spotify:
On a rosy Feb. 14 in Baltimore, Real Estate devotees — some who’d scooted to numerous shows on this run — enjoyed the group as a quartet in the least pretentious of clubs and in impressive lockstep.
Rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist Martin Courtney, bassist Alex Bleeker, lead guitarist Julian Lynch, and drummer Sammi Niss were not just casually adept but cheerful as they mixed some of the most lasting Real Estate tunes with the first seven songs from the band’s latest record, Daniel, released last February on Domino.
“We’re basically from New Jersey, but as soon as we get to Baltimore, we’re home,” said Bleeker, who referred to Ottobar as “legendary” and acknowledged his years-old “relationship with this pole,” a reference to the support column downstage left with a tendency to block bass players from the crowd’s view.
“By the way, Happy Valentine’s Day from me to you,” he added.
With buoyant takes on “Somebody New” and “Flowers,” both from Daniel, Real Estate set a breezy tone and invited the audience to be present in the intimate setting, to relish a band that has accomplished much in its time together, even as band members have moved to different parts of the country.
Courtney, Bleeker, and Lynch have been friends for decades, and though Lynch joined the group in 2016, the synergy they have fuels Real Estate to pursue a limitless accord in the surf rock sound.
Courtney also delivers satisfaction with his abiding vocals, and last Friday night, he and his mates hit some incredible harmonies together, like in “November,” a jangle from 2020’s The Main Thing.
Revisit Real Estate’s 2020 studio album, The Main Thing, via Spotify:
In “Stained Glass,” from 2017’s In Mind, the group showed its ability to guide what starts as a middling motif into a billowing and affective rock composition. “Talking Backwards,” from the 2014 smash album Atlas, and “Darling,” also from In Mind, sound like classics at this point, and those on hand at Ottobar were elated to hear them.
It was a festive holiday stop in Baltimore — capped with a take on “Friday I’m In Love” by the Cure, assisted by opening act Grumpy. And though Real Estate was set to play one more date on its More Tour, foul winter weather would prevent the following night’s show, making the Ottobar visit all the more meaningful.
Setlist
Somebody New
Flowers
Had to Hear
Municipality
November
Water Underground
Haunted World
Wonder Years
Stained Glass
Half a Human
Talking Backwards
Crime
Fake Blues
Freeze Brain
Darling
Interior
Say No More
All The Same
Encore
Suburban Dogs
It’s Real
Friday I’m In Love
Below are color digital photos along with a few scratchy, dark home-rolled/developed/scanned 35mm black-and-white shots of Real Estate and opener Grumpy performing at Ottobar in Baltimore, Md., on Feb. 14, 2025. All images copyright and courtesy of Casey Ryan Vock.
Real Estate
Grumpy
