On Wednesday night I attended The Revolutions and Resolutions Tour at the Studio @ Webster Hall in NYC. Playing the sold-out show were The Audition, The Dangerous Summer, The Right Coast, & local bands The Life I Lead and Score 24. The entire concert there was a high amount of energy from the bands and positive vibes throughout the room.
Starting off the night were Long Island’s Score 24. Playing pop-punk music similar to Hit The Lights and The Years Gone By, the band’s songs consisted of catchy lyrics and upbeat guitars. I found their set to be pretty fun and the audience seemed to enjoy them.
Next up were The Life I Lead. This NYC pop-rock band put on a strong performance and had the room nodding along. Their song “Bright Lights” definitely caught my attention and I would keep an eye out for this band.
The Right Coast took the stage next and played a very short, mediocre set. This may partially be due to the fact that the singer was sick, but their songs weren’t anything special. They did catch the attention of the crowd with their cover of Taylor Swift’s “Love Story”, but really how many bands have covered that song now? I will say their chemistry as a band was very good though and since they’re still pretty new as a band, there’s hope for their music to improve.
As soon as The Dangerous Summer took the stage, cheers were heard throughout the crowd. The band opened with “Settle Down” and played an on-point 8 song set. Included were songs “Surfaced”, “The Permanent Rain”, “Disconnect”, and they ended with “Northern Lights”. I was pleasantly surprised to see around half the room singing back every single word of every song. Even talking to the band afterwards, they were surprised and so happy. I’m really glad I was finally able to see them, especially since Reach For The Sun is such a fantastic album.
After a 20 minute break, The Audition came out on stage to Mystikal’s “Shake It Fast”. I could already tell I was in for a fun set and the audience gave one of the most positive reactions I’ve seen for a band in a long time. The band played a mix of songs off of their 3 albums, including some of my favorites such as “Dance Halls Turn To Ghost Towns”, “Hell To Sell”, and “Los Angeles”. Singer Danny Stevens also announced the bands new album, Great Danger, will be released March 16th and played 2 new songs, “The Art Of Living” and “You Ruined This”. Both songs were very upbeat and everyone seemed to enjoy them. Throughout the set jokes were had which included outrageous stories and making fun of a fan’s shirt, which resulted in the fan coming on stage, ripping off his shirt, and then redeeming himself by pulling an Audition shirt out of his pocket and putting it on. They closed the night out with “Don’t Be So Hard”, but due to overwhelming chanting they came back out and performed “Sign.Steal.Deliver.”. This band definitely knows how to put on a live show, as it was one of the best sets I’ve seen in a while.
It was such a fun show and all the bands are really accessible to talk to afterwards. The only downfall was Sparks The Rescue didn’t play my date, but they are on the rest of the tour. I would definitely recommend checking out the Revolutions and Resolutions tour if it comes near you.
For their upcoming EP, Meet Me In Death Valley, Black Suit Youth have unleashed 6 songs that will instantly infect your ears and leave them aching for more. They have created a formula that is part rock, part pop, a touch of edge, and a dash of well thought out lyrics.
The EP starts out with the song “Mosquitoes”, which hits you right away with an enticing beat and strong vocals. This proves to be a great opener as it helps set the tone for what the band is about. Upon first hearing “Rebels”, I instantly got the lyric “singing sad songs and eulogies” stuck in my head. The song is also sends out a slight Rise Against vibe and would most likely work great live. The EP then slows down a tadwith “Don’t Look Away” and “Hot Summers in Hi-Fi”. Both songs about love that lure you in with their choruses. Next is the title track, which features excellent guitars and more of the sound that seperates the band from other rock acts. Closing out the EP is their single “Dropout”. I can picture this song becoming the band’s most well known, as it easily transgends genres and grabs attention upon the first line.
From start to finish, Meet Me In Death Valley leaves the listener happy to have found the album and wanting to repeat hearing it again and again. Black Suit Youth has perfected their sound with this release and whether you like hard rock, pop-punk, or radio rock, there seems to be a touch of something in there for everyone. As soon as the EP comes out, I suggest you give it a chance. If the band continues the path they’re on, I can see (and hope) that they will gain success.
RIYL: The Gaslight Anthem, Rise Against, The Ataris
This past Sunday night (November 8th) I attended the Alternative Press Fall Ball Tour featuring The Academy Is…,Mayday Parade, Set Your Goals, The Secret Handshake, and You Me At Six. We got there about 20 minutes after doors opened, and although the show was sold out, it took very quick for us to get in the doors and get a spot fairly close to the stage. After about 30 minutes the show began, a good time was had, and some interesting observations occurred.
First up was You Me At Six from the U.K. Being their first full U.S. tour, not as many people were familiar with them, but they still got a positive reaction from the crowd. They played a 7 song set, including two of my favorites, “Finders Keepers” and “If I Were In Your Shoes”, as well as a cover of Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face”. Their set was full of energy and I would definitely assume You Me At Six will be gaining a ton of fans on this tour. Next up was The Secret Handshake, for the sake of not going on a rant, I’ll just cut this down to a few sentences. His complete set, even when he was just talking was auto-tuned. He used samples from various popular songs and jokingly claimed he invented music as well as trying to prove what he was doing was good and different or something. The younger crowd seemed to be into it, but I just stood still and watched respectfully, as he was up there doing what he loves. The respect I gave was not found amongst the crowd once the next band came on.
Being the main band I went to see, and easily the odd men out on the tour, Set Your Goals was up third. They came out looking ready for prom and began with their song “Summer Jam”. Playing a set equally mixed with new and old material, including “Don’t Let This Win Over You” and “The Fallen”, they put on a great set and one could tell their live set has improved over the years. Having seen them headline at the same venue this past summer, I was expecting one reaction and got another. You could see a small portion of people scattered throughout the crowd singing along, as well as a small pit happening in the back of the room. Besides that most people seemed uninterested and would rather stand there text messaging or complaining the entire time than pay attention to the band. I understand people have different tastes and may not like them, which is fine, but if you’re going to pay to be somewhere at least look at the band. Also, and this was noticed throughout the whole show, don’t scream in horror if you accidentally get pushed and don’t run away if a crowd surfer is coming, help them so they don’t fall. The lack of respect for other people at this show was ridiculous, as it seemed that more people were worried about their hair getting messed up than other people’s safety.
Mayday Parade was up next and you could tell the entire crowd was finally excited. Their set was energetic and they interacted well with the crowd. They played only 3 new songs, and then all older songs off of their previous releases. For “Miserable At Best”, lead singer Derek Sanders came out just him and a keyboard and as it reached the end of the song the full band came out. This was a nice slow-down to a rather upbeat set. Having not seen the band live before, I was impressed with their performance.
Last up was The Academy Is… Having seen them once before in a large seated outdoor venue, it was nice to see them in a more intimate setting. A nice surprise was that they focused more on material from their first two albums, such as “Classifieds” and “Neighbors”. Everyone was singing a long to every song and the band William threw in some quirky moves to go along with them. Playing “Slow Down” was a great way to end the night.
Besides the problems I talked of earlier, it was a really good show. All the bands were on point and you could tell they put their all into their performances. Also, Set Your Goals announced they will indeed be going on tour with Motion City Soundtrack and The Swellers in early 2010, so that’s pretty exciting. I was hoping to post some videos, but they came out pretty bad and this post is long enough.
Newly signed to Equal Vision Records, This Time Next Year really know how to crank out solid pop-punk tunes. Listening to Road Maps and Heart Attacks brings you back to the days of early-2000s pop-punk, which should be no surprise since the band named themselves after a The Movielife album.
The album starts off on a bang with “Rise & Fall Curtain Call”, a fast and upbeat track that displays the dual vocals that shine throughout the record. The lead single, “New Sensation”, focuses on the bands out there today that all sound the same and just hop on the next big trend. The chorus of the song, “You wanted the role, now your playing the part, they’re dying to be just like you. Sing us a song where we can’t sing along and you’re the new sensation”, is strong and easily gets stuck in your head.
As the album progresses the tracks start to blend together, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just a tad bit boring. “Rhyme and Reason” easily stands out and provides probably the most heartfelt lyrics of the album, “you are the body that breathes this love, so I promise it’s all for you”.The track “Calling In Dead” is a song New Found Glory wishes they wrote and could easily be a single. “Liquid Diet” and “Mischief With No Direction” are two of the grittier songs on the album and will please those who instantly fell in love with the band’s EPs.
Overall Road Maps and Heart Attacks is generally enjoyable and a stand-out amongst this years pop-punk releases. The songs are catchy, although some filler tracks are present. Both “Alex In Wonderland” and “Cheers To A Late Night” we’re present on previous releases and have been re-worked to be featured on the album. I would highly suggest checking this album out though, as well as the bands earlier work. One thing that greatly sets this album apart is that the band is offering it at a “pay what you want” price so you get to choose how much money you buy the album for.
Standout Tracks: Liquid Diet, Rise & Fall Curtain Call
We’re an ambient/electronic/spoken word duo. We’re high school friends, who despite the distance between us, decided to make music. Our songs cover a variety of topics including love, loss, anger, politics, and whatever we’re feeling at the time. Our albums are our attempts trying to make sense of the world around us.- Matt (Finneyerkes)
Upon first listening to Finneyerkes, I had chills running down my spine. Their music has a calming, yet haunting sense to it that makes you intrigued as to the thought process that went into making it. They tell a story through instruments and sound with sparse spoken word thrown in. The songs are different, refreshing, and actually make you think and use your imagination to find meaning in them.
Finneyerkes album Without End starts off with the track “Elsie”, clocking in at roughly 8 minutes long. It starts out a slow mix and then about half way through the song the first words of the album commence, “…this is the year that my sister was raped, and this is the knowledge that it might happen again…this is the moment where you find out how useless you really are”. After that a pounding beat kicks in and you can feel the emotion of the song. The rest of the album follows a similar fashion mixing guitars, electronics, and various sounds to create a mood. It comes though with themes of love, loss, religion, and encompasses the listener into their world. Upon the end of the album you have to sit for a minute, ponder what you listened to, and then regain a sense of reality.
What do you do when you have some extra tracks that don’t exactly fit into your album? Make another album of course. Bastard is completely instrumental and takes you on a journey. It begins with “Cobain(featuring Yawning)”, an uplifting track that delivers more of a full sound than the songs present on Without End. It then dives into the more somber “Mountain Lion” followed by the darker “Keely”. The album carries on and reaches “disMix(by Cylon)” a very soothing, nature inspired track, that works as awesome background music. The album ends with “Honeymoon At The Holocaust Museum” and you are left in somewhat of a trance.
Listening to these albums will be very different experience for most who read this blog, as it strays away from the typical music we cover. I suggest giving Finneyerkes a try, as I did and maybe like me, you’ll greatly enjoy what you hear. I might also add their music works great while relaxing or studying, which is always a positive. You can download both of these albums, as well as Finneyerkes other material for free on their myspace.
