Eric Hutchinson comes to NCC’s Wentz stage

Eric Hutchinson will perform at North Central College on Sept. 23. | Courtesy of NCC

You’ve heard his song on a popular TV show, now you can see him live.

Warner Bros. Records recording artist Eric Hutchinson performs at 6 p.m. Sept. 23 at North Central College.

Hutchinson’s song, “Watching You Watch Him,” debuted on last season’s premiere of ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy.” It is from his second album, “Moving Up Living Down,” which was released in April. He has toured worldwide with such artists as Kelly Clarkson, Jason Mraz and One Republic.

Hutchinson was selected as a VH1 “You Oughta Know” artist, and has garnered comparisons to Mraz, Ben Folds and John Mayer.

Hutchinson is winding down his 50-date tour, and getting ready for an “Almost Solo” tour with himself and his longtime band member, multi-instrumentalist Elliott Blaufuss.

“We’re doing a special, kind of stripped-down acoustic tour, but

(Naperville’s) show will have the full band and it’s going to be a good time,” he said.

He said that Naperville audiences should expect the unexpected.

“It’s going to be a mix of both albums,” he said. “The band and I have a lot of fun onstage and it’s just about having a good time. I like to go to concerts to remember what it’s like to be an audience member. When I’m onstage I care that the audience is there, and the whole show is geared around making sure they have a good time.”

This show will include a full band, allowing him to “jump all over and cover a lot of ground,” he said.

“There are a lot of different sounds on my record, so sometimes it can be a challenge to get all those sounds out on the stage, so we have to be creative.”

As he’s performing in the upscale Wentz Concert Hall instead of a nightclub, he’s promised to keep it classy.

“The show changes based on what the audience sounds like that night,” he said. “If the place is a little fancier and the crowd is a little more well-behaved, we have to sort of incite them to let loose a little bit.”

The album “Moving Up, Living Down” is his first entirely on a major label. He wrote it at his home in New York City, and recorded it in London and Los Angeles, he said.

“I think the album is really about transition and growing up,” he said. “I think the album is for anybody who is going through something, or growing up, or looking back on those times.”

The most gratifying part of the album cycle is sharing the music with fans and seeing them singing the songs back to him, he said.

“It’s a high-energy show,” he said. “I give 100 percent every night. It’s singing and dancing and clapping ... we tell some stories, we tell some jokes. If you don’t know the music, it’s the best way to get introduced to it all. It’s a fun night. Leave your worries at the door and come out and enjoy some music.”

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