Photos: Rex Orange County at the Fonda Theatre

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Rex Orange County, with Randy Newman, at the Fonda Theatre (Photo by Samuel C. Ware)
Rex Orange County, with Randy Newman, at the Fonda Theatre (Photo by Samuel C. Ware)

Alexander O’Connor, better known by his stage name Rex Orange County, took the stage on Monday night for the first of two sold-out shows at the Fonda Theatre. Backed this time by a full band consisting of drums, bass and a small string section and horns, the 20-year-old Englishman belted out his catchy tunes to a young crowd that sang along with every word. A few songs into his set he was joined by Thea, who accompanied him on his song “Sycamore Girl.” The band left the stage and Rex OC grabbed his guitar to play a few songs solo, including a cover of Alicia Keys’ “No One” that once again had the packed house singing along.

After bringing the band back up, Rex introduced an very special guest, the one and only Randy Newman (who had headlined the Hollywood Bowl the night before). Together they performed Newman’s “You’ve Got a Friend in Me.” Much like the crowd, Rex OC seemed surprised and overwhelmed at the experience, and seemed to take a breather before moving on to the rest of his set.

In addition to singing along with Rex OC, the ecstatic crowd showed their appreciation by throwing many gifts on stage during his performance (flowers, a shirt, a letter, etc.), one of which was an iPhone. After joking to the crowd about leaving with the phone and possibly selling it on eBay, he struck a quick pose and took a selfie, before tossing it back into the crowd.

Near the end of his set, and during the song “Happiness,” there was a failed attempt to release balloons from up above the audience, which are a usual occurrence for Rex OC shows. Once he came back on stage for his encore song, he looked up to the unopened net of colorful balloons and told the crowd to ignore them for the rest of the evening, and continued on with his final tune “Loving is Easy,” this time with confetti cannons blasting out over the crowd.

Rex Orange County returns to the Fonda tonight.

Setlist: Intro, Apricot Princess, TV, So Far, Paradise, Uno, Sycamore Girl (with Thea), No One, Untitled, About Being Sad, Corduroy Dreams, You’ve Got a Friend in Me (with Randy Newman), Sunflower, Best Friend, Happiness, Living is Easy.

Photos and recap by Samuel C. Ware