It's been a while...

The Academy Is, The Cab

Hello My Name Is... Tour

Eddie's Attic - Atlanta, Ga

January 24, 2009

Kristen and I got to Eddie's at like 12:30 with Jacob and Whitney.  After I was annoyed to tears by a few girls trying to be TAI and The Cab (you can see videos of them covering songs on youtube), doors opened and we went in to what was maybe the most awkward "rock show" I've seen. It was an acoustic show so it was understandable but there was no standing room. Everyone was sitting at tables, in the "stands" or at the bar. We were at the top of the "stands" so we could see over everyone. On a side note, before I get into the actual show, Jacob and Whitney totally scammed their way in. haha. 

Anyways, The Cab came out and played a few songs. Then Academy came out and they all played together. They did several covers, my favorite being NSYNC's "Gone". After they all played for about a half an hour, The Cab dudes left and there was a tiny intermission before TAI began. This was their set list:

(Be Your Husband)

Pour Yourself A Drink

Automatic Eyes

Working Class Hero

Every Burden Has A Version

The Test

Brick

Classifieds

Seed

Down And Out

After The Last Midtown Show

Eastbound Traffic

About A Girl

Overall, great set. William is so talented (as are the others). We stayed after and talked to William for a while. He's such a sweet heart. He posted on his blog & twitter that Atlanta was the best show on the tour so far (yay!). 

Eddie's is a cool acoustic venue. Check it out if you ever get the chance. 

Time is all that we have, so won't you let me inside your perfect world for one night?

11/22/2008
The Hush Sound, The Spill Canvas, Augustana, OneRepublic
The Tabernacle, Atlanta, GA

I told Ashley I would be blogging about this moment in my life...so get ready for backstory. haha

I'd been talking about "maybe" going to this show for a few weeks...and finally made the final final decision to go around midnight the night before.  I was having a mini-party at my house, and one of my coworkers from Burbank called to tell me he got me tickets for the show (The Spill Canvas is on our west coast label).  I was pretty dang excited, because I've never seen TSC before, and I'm in love with Augustana.  I have a slight history with Hush Sound, so that was exciting too.  Biggest thing though...was OneRepublic.  If you know ONE thing about me, know this:  I am obsessed with boy bands.  No, obsession doesn't cover it.  There isn't a word for it.

A few years ago, Lance Bass had a competition on MTV for singers/songwriters of pop music.  The prize was a shitty contract with his shitty management company (ooh I wanna win that...not.).  Anyway.  The winner of the competition was a relatively cute, and super super talented guy named Ryan Tedder.  As predicted, Ryan faded into oblivion, and my friends and I held onto his crappy recording of "The Look" (it is still one of my favorite songs) thinking it would be the last we'd ever her of him.

That was until earlier this year (or was it last year?) when I heard a familiar voice on my radio.  The DJ followed up with "That was Timbaland with 'Apologize'".  That was NOT Timbaland singing.  That was Ryan Tedder!!!!  I did some more research and discovered that Ryan had been writing and producing some of my fav singers songs and albums...and I was elated when I found out he was the voice behind OneRepublic - a band a few of my friends were already into, but I was only tuned into thanks to Timbaland.  I still get giddy thinking about the moment it clicked that Ryan Tedder was coming back into my life. haha  I wish I'd been as cutting edge as all my other friends who loved OneRepublic without realizing it was our beloved R.Ted...but I'm not that cool.  Thank you top 40 radio!!!!!

Fast forward again to Atlanta last Saturday.

The Hush Sound was fabulous as they could be.  The chick in that band makes me want to do mean things to people...so I could do without her shrill speaking voice...but the rest of the band was fabulous :).  The Spill Canvas was all I could have hoped for.  Lead singer's voice reminds me a lot of Rob Thomas in some way shape or form.  They made some funny jokes about celibacy.  I drank a tiny bit of vodka.  I fed a lot of vodka and tequila to my roomie Cathy, who came with me.  This was one of the best things I did all night.

Augustana went on, and I freaked out.  I'm pretty much in love with them.  Cathy was GONE by the time they went on, so instead of being a wallflower, she was ALL about dancing with me.  So we danced.  Then I FINALLY got to hear "Stars and Boulevards" live (they didnt play it the whole way thru in Nashville :().  I flipped outttttt!!!!  It was fun :)

There was like, an hour between sets before OneRepublic went on.  It was torture.

Then they went on and blew me awaaaaaay.  I NEVER thought I'd EVERRRRRR see Ryan Tedder live in person.  He is amazing.  In respect to the rest of the band that I am not biased toward loving, they were rather incredible too.  The guitarist literally made my jaw drop to the floor.  There was cello, and cello always wins me over.  ALL of the bands that night brought on members from the other bands to help out on a few songs - it was cool to see live collaborations like that.  OneRepublic brought on Darren from The Hush Sound for a few songs, and he shook the eggball.  Neat.

I kept waiting for OneRepublic to play "The Look", but of course they didnt hahaha  I didn't expect it, and I'll remember not to expect it in the future.  In all, I am completely turned on to this band, and I'm ready to be done hearing them on the radio, and go out to actually purchase their CD.  I looked through my CD collection, and I'm already pretty stocked up on the work of Ryan Tedder - without even realizing it.  That's what happens when iTunes takes over, and removes the liner notes from my life.  DOWN WITH iTUNES!  UP WITH PHYSICAL CDs!!!!!!!!!!

I met The Spill Canvas, and they were fabulously friendly.  Thanked them for letting me steal ideas for my country artists websites.  They laughed.  Cathy was drunk...made things funny hahahaha

We drove home and made it back in record time by about 2:30am, then I was a veggie all day Sunday :)  Good weekend, and good night!

(be sure to imeem up some Ryan Tedder - "The Look" is an absolutely gorgeous song, TERRIBLY recorded...but if a man ever writes me a song like that, he is mine)

"I know this place like the back of my hand"

11/18
Lights and Lydia (and Lovedrug and Copeland...but I didn't see them)
Rcktwn - Nashville, TN

Hi everyone!  I got lost when the name of the blog changed, but I found it again because I decided to stop being lazy and actually type it in.  I've been to QUITE a few shows since my last blog (which my last blog said I would have details about my New York CMJ trip...I should revisit that and share all of the details from that trip...That'll wait for another night though).  I'll probably go back in time to revisit some of the shows I went to in the past month or so...Some quick highlights were seeing Justin Guarini and Micky Dolenz play in a Nashville honky tonk, Family Force 5 in Cincy, Duncan Sheik and Lauren Pritchard at 3rd & Lindsley, Hark the Herald and Forever in a Day at RCKTWN, Frank Caliendo at TPAC, and Scouting For Girls in NYC.  If you WANT to get super details on any of those shows - comment, and I'll write out a full bloggage.

On to my latest and greatest show of the week :)

I went out to support the label by seeing one of my fave new poppy-hipster girls, Lights. (http://www.iamlights.com)  She is absolutely adorable, and so good to her fans.  I had listened to a little bit of her music before the show and I was full on ready to dance it out.  Unfortunately, the indie snobs of Nashville decided to pack the RCKTWN mainstage, and pretend they were too good to be there.  I danced anyway, and got some evil hipster glares.  Lights was fantastic.  She sang all the songs from her EP (which is fabulous, btw), and a few other songs.  You might recognize "February Air" from some Old Navy commercials, and I've heard some of her other songs were played on The Hills last season.  Cool stuff.  It reminds me of like, a super tame younger Lady Gaga...mixed with some Skye Sweetnam?? I don't know...maybe it's the Canadian that I'm getting that from.

Next onstage was Lydia (http://www.myspace.com/lydia).  They were a band of boys, and one girl on keys and backing vocals.  Super mellow, super talented group of people.  I'm excited to buy their album.  The lead singer guy's voice reminds me of SOMEONE...so if you can tell me who it is I'll freak out on you in a good way.  I THINK it reminds me of the lead singer of this band called Allred from Utah.  But I'm not sure.  Just a side-note...Allred are not Mormons...I asked them.

I ended up leaving in the middle of Lydia (I hate leaving early from shows, I like to give all bands my equal attention, plus this maks my 8th show I've gone to and missed Copeland at) because my roomie had to study for a test the next morning.  School comes before my respect for live music, I suppose.

So in all, it was a fun short night!  I love the pop vibe I'm getting from the new bands I've been seeing.  If you know me, you know I'm a pop girl to the death....even if it has to be "underground pop".

So if she's in your area, go check out Lights!  She's pretty radical.  And dance, even if the people around you think they're too cool to be in your mere presence. :)

"Bounce, bounce, baby, bounce back to me"

11/4: Rock Band Live Tour
featuring The Cab, Plain White Ts, Dashboard Confessional, and Panic at the Disco
Gwinnett Arena- Duluth, GA

Unlike Ashley, I bought my ticket for $50 two months in advance to the show, which ultimately proved to be a disappointment. We got to the Arena about 30 minutes before doors opened to get in the GA line. Once we were inside, we had to do the whole sitting on the floor thing until almost time for the show, which I hate about the Arena. But anyway, the show started off with The Cab, which was the main band I wanted to see. I thought they did an amazing job. The sound and lighting of the Arena definitely added to their performance, which is not something I am used to from them. At one point, Singer came down into the crowd and was attacked by girls. It's so crazy seeing that when I saw them first just nine months ago and maybe ten people knew their stuff and no one really cared about the band. But I loved their set.
After The Cab played, we went upstairs to get drinks because we can hardly stand to be in the same room as Plain White Ts when they are performing. They have decent music, but Tom's voice always kills it for me. We came back down for the last two songs of their set, and it was pretty painful.
Then Dashboard Confessional came out. There's just something about Chris Carabba that I can't help but admire. I've seen them before, but this time they were a lot better than I remembered. The only bad thing was that they are so mellow and I was so tired that I could hardly keep my eyes open, which NEVER happens at a show. They did do a cover to "So What" by Pink that was hilarious. They brought out The Cab and Plain White Ts for one big jam. Chris Carabba prancing around and singing the lyrics was definitely the highlight of my night.
In between Dashboard and Panic, there was a bit of fighting going on with the fangirls. Apparently I am too tall to go to shows like this. I kept having to move out of the way of little girls who would scream every other minute. There is like a pitch that only girls under the age of 15 can reach and it was pretty deafening. Please tell me that I was never like that. It was like being at a Backstreet Boys concert. I'm sorry, but Panic does not do choreographed dance (well, at least not a lot...), so I don't see why there was a need for it all. I feel like I have outgrown that scene a little bit, and when I am only seventeen and no longer fit in with the fans of the bands I love, that's pretty rediculous. But Panic was really good. After years of waiting to see them, I wish it had not been on this tour, but they still sounded so good. Their sound has matured so much from their first CD and I was actually impressed with what I heard. They played a good mix from both of their albums as well as a cover of "Shout" that was too much fun. Overall, the show was not worth the money, but at least I was able to see Panic for the first time.

"Things are shaping up to be pretty odd"

Panic At The Disco, Dashboard Confessional, The Cab, Plain White Tees
(The Rock Band Live Tour)
Nov. 4, 2008
Gwinnett Arena - Duluth, Ga

After voting, and buying tickets for $4.55 each, Lauren and I drove to Gwinnett. The line was ridiculously small for a Arena show. Apparently ticket sales were bad because they were giving tickets away (all you had to pay was the convenience charges). This was a pretty sweet deal considering tickets were selling for $50 a week earlier.
Anyways, we went in to a small crowd (it filled up later). The Cab opened. Plain White Tees played second. (I'm being nice by not saying how much I dislike both of these bands)
Dashboard was co-headlining. They played a nice long set filled with all their hits. I've never seen DC before and didn't know I knew as much of their music as I did. It was a really good set. Chris has great stage presence and they're definitely crowd pleasers. He also kept updating us on the election which we were grateful for.
Panic was amazing as usual. I really love them since they've lost the synth. (They also lost the pot leaves from the mic stands) They played a good mix of new and old songs, and closed with a "Shout" cover. I found this really weird and am still a little baffled over it. Brendon really has an incredible voice. He can sing anything and it's going to sound great.
It was a great show.
But the best part was when I left and Kristen called to tell me Obama won.
=)
Welcome to the new administration.

"Take from the air, take to the streets and I..."

Portugal. The Man with Wintersleep and Earl Greyhound
October 26, 2008
The Brewery - Raleigh, NC

This was definitely a trip turned epic. We left a lot later than intended... We were supposed to leave around 9-ish? I didn't leave my house until 9:30, picked up Claudia and got to Kyle's at 10, then we went to get Sara around 10:30 and she wasn't ready since she'd just gotten up, so we got breakfast (ending in me getting syrup all over myself) and brought hers to eat on the road. We were on our way at 11-ish.

On the long drive on I-95, we stopped at the well-known (well.. by anyone who's ever gone North from the South on 95) South of the Border to take pee breaks and crazy pictures with the crazy statues and stuff. It was so much fun and killed 30 minutes of our time.. Which was nice. When we finally got to the Brewery, there was no one else there, so we went and used the bathroom (THERE WAS ONLY ONE STALL OPEN)/got food at Zaxby's before finding where to stand in line and everything. We played maracas and a tambourine, singing songs all day while waiting for doors. Apparently everyone that walked by (even when we were seen by some of the bands) enjoyed it. We were the only people there until about 6, which was an hour before doors opened. My friend Aeron and his friend Jeff showed up before an entire crowd. Overall, there were MAYBE 100 people there the entire night.

The Brewery is this really nice, cute little venue. It is TINY and the show was definitely intimate. The first band up was Wintersleep. Claudia saw the same tour in Tampa, FL and told us that Wintersleep hadn't shown up, so it was a treat for all of us when they did on our date. They didn't play the song that Kyle and I were looking forward to, but they did play "Oblivion" which is an incredible song. They put on a great show, and it was nice to see them.

Next was Earl Greyhound.. Who I'd never really heard of before this, but OH MAN. They're basically a band right out of the 70's rock era, and they're in-freaking-credible. The bass drum their drummer uses is HUMONGOUS.. And I went deaf for about a week after seeing them since I was standing by their guitar amp and they played SO loud. They were so good, though.. I've become quite a fan.

Finally, it was time for Portugal. The Man to come on. The last time I saw them, they were missing their bassist, so they couldn't really do many of the songs they wanted to. This time, Zach (their bassist) was there and.. Boy was it incredible. They basically played continuously, sticking bits and pieces of their other songs into the song they were currently playing, bridging into another song.. It was so enjoyable. I was blown away. OH, AND THEY WERE THE SECOND BAND I'VE SEEN COVER HELTER SKELTER IN A WEEK. Seriously, though, this performance blew the first time Claudia and I had seen them out of the water.. It was just so good. I actually whined when it was over. I seriously could have stood there for another hour or two (they played for two hours, anyway) just listening to them play whatever they wanted. Claudia and I had the maracas we'd been playing earlier in the day and played them during Portugal's set.. Backing up every time they played the maracas or tambourine. They came up to us afterward telling us we did a good job.

We shot the shit with the guys a little bit before Aeron, Jeff, and the rest of us said our goodbyes to the band and to each other to start the epic drive home. Overall, it was an amazing experience.. And if you ever get the chance, I'd highly recommend catching Portugal. The Man if they're ever playing near you.

"Call the police, this whole place is gonna burn."

Pierce The Veil, Breathe Carolina, Four Letter Lie, Emarosa, Seven Story Fall
The 7 Venue - Douglasville, Ga
Oct. 30, 2008

So, I got to the venue late and had a mini panic attack cause there was a LOT of people there. All of this was for no reason because after the box office opened, people bought tickets then left. Anyways, Veronica came and got Vic to turn in the guest list (thanks, again!). We went inside, got barricade. There were a lot of people there but no one was pushing/moshing/touching me so it was awesome. Seven Story started almost immediately after we got in and played three new songs! Their new stuff is sooo freaking good. If you haven't seen them lately, what are you waiting for? Anyways, Justin almost killed me with his guitar. They didn't play the "Art of Fiction" which made me a little sad. But whatever, the new songs made up for it. (I recorded one, I'll youtube it later)
Emarosa played next. (surprising? very) Johnny was very clearly wasted but still put on a good performance. His vocals could have been turned up louder but that was the case with most of the bands that night. He collapsed at the end of the set and stumbled off stage. I was worried but apparently this is normal cause his bandmates could have cared less. (The guitarist from this band looks just like the white version of Johnathan from Esme!)
Four Letter Lie performed a lot of new stuff and I think one old song. I was disappointed by this. Apparently Douglasville, does not love them though. Only like ten people seemed to be into them. And some girl was just being a complete bitch to the singer. Their new cabs are so bad ass! They have their faces on them! and the new drum kit has Derek's face on it! I was highly impressed. They're performance was good. I think they were better last time but I guess the crowd was better last time too.
Breathe Carolina... I have such mixed feelings about this band. And I had no idea they were as popular as they are. Most of the people were there for them. It felt more like a rave than a concert. Let's be honest here. That's a lot of synth in one band. There's one guy who plays keytar/synth, another who "DJs", and another keyboard player. No guitars, no bass, no drums... and two vocalists. It's definitely an experience. They're kind of like Metro Station but with screaming instead of whispering. haha. Great use of lasers though.
Pierce the Veil was incredible as always. Some creepy Tales-from-the-Cript-esque guy came out and did this whole pun-filled speech about the rock show we were about to witness. I love puns and Tales from the Cript. So, I was stoked about this guy. They all ran out and Jaime over guessed his landing and ended up falling into the crowd. Pretty hilarious if you ask me. They played a few covers: "Bleeding Love", "Beat It", and "Closer". Johnny came out and they played "She Makes Dirty Words Sound Pretty" and they played their other usual songs. Veronica and I danced our butts off. It was so much fun. Their set was way too short but amazing nonetheless.
After the show I went to talk to the guys, who were all super sweet. They're the one "smaller" band that I still get super nervous around. I talked to Jaime about Patrick from Pensive and he told me cute stories about them in high school. haha.
Anyways, great bands, bad venue. This was like the first week of this tour so if it's coming to your area, check it out.

"Girl you make me feel like I'm walking into danger"

Family Force 5, Danger Radio, Play Radio Play, Ultraviolet Sound
some weird ass theater - Chattanooga, TN
Oct. 29, 2008

The venue was seriously the weirdest place to have a show ever. It was like a symphony orchestra theater at a college. There was about two feet of space between when the stage ended and when the seats began. But you better believe I was in that two feet. haha. The stage was really weird too. The band was set up reallly reallly far back.
Ultraviolet sound was interesting. They tried to have a dance party in a venue that was not set up for one. They were very trance-y. Nico (Danger Radio) came out and drummed for them during one of their songs.
Danger Radio (loves of my life) played second. They had a short set but Andrew worked that huge stage pretty well. He was sick but still sounded great. They have a new bass player (Maaavin left for personal reasons). Everything sounded good. They played opened with "Party Foul" and played mostly new stuff after that. Elan was rocking a slicked back pony tail which was out of character for him. Overall, great performance but not the best DR show I've seen. The venue played a huge part in this though.
Play Radio Play... I don't like them. I'll just leave it at that.
Family Force 5 was great. That freaking wall that Nadaddy plays just facinates me! I want one! I didn't really know their new stuff so much but it all sounded good. Soul Glow kept yelling "choo choo!!" and kept trying to incorporate Chattanooga in all the songs. At the end, during "Earthquake" everyone (not me) got on stage and danced with them. Very entertaining band, again the venue just sucked.
This tour is over so I can't tell you to go check it out but I can tell you to never go to a show at that venue. lol

"I'm falling more in love..."

This Providence, House Of Heroes
The Masquerade (Purgatory) - Atlanta, Ga
Oct. 28, 2008

This one's going to be shorter than usual. HOH was good as usual, heavier than I remembered them being. This was the first time I've ever seen This Providence and I was a little disappointed. The crowd was tiny and I had heard the bands make comments about how "this crowd sucks". It didn't feel like they were too into the set. They played maybe eight or nine songs including both versions of "My Beautiful Rescue". They sounded good musically (when their new keyboardist wasn't goofing up the new version). Dan kind of stormed off the stage during the last song and wasn't seen afterwards. David and Gavin were genuinely nice though. Overall, this wasn't what I wanted it to be. It was a good show, I just expected more out of them since I've waited so long to see them.
Check out both bands on the Relient K & Ludo tour.

Thrice!

Almost a week later, I'm finally getting the time to sit down and write about seeing Thrice:

Thrice and The Gaslight Anthem
October 19, 2008
House of Blues - Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

On Sunday, October 19, 2008, my friends (Kyle and Sara) and I arrived at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina around 2:30-ish after running a bunch of errands that HAD to be done before we could go enjoy ourselves. Doors weren't until 6, so we hung out outside and caught up on some school work. When 4:00 rolled around, the HOB began serving dinner, and since we were doing the Pass the Line program, we grabbed our food to go (running into Dustin Kensrue in the process! Awkward small talk conversation ensued.) and took it back to the line.

The House of Blues was on the ball that day (mind you, this was the first time I've been there in a year.. And I really hate that venue.). We got in at 6:00 on the dot and ended up on the center of the barricade. The first band that played was The Gaslight Anthem. They were great. They really remind me of my favorite band (Hot Water Music) so I found it hard not to enjoy them. Their set was pretty good, but it was honestly too long just because I was so pumped to see Thrice. Gaslight finished up, and I was getting pretty crazy. Thrice was up next.

Sadly, during their setup, they had technical difficulties, so they had to scrap a few of the songs they had on their setlist. I was pretty bummed, but even with all of that going on, they did not disappoint. I always have very high expectations for Thrice and I'm glad to say that I have not been let down. I grabbed a setlist when they were done and the set consisted of a good mix of songs from Volume I of The Alchemy Index, Vheissu, and The Artist in the Ambulance:

Firebreather
The Melting Point of Wax
Blood Clots and Black Holes
The Sky is Falling
Of Dust and Nations (I LOVE THAT SONG!!!!)
The Messenger
Broken Lungs
Helter Skelter (Beatles cover)
Betrayal as a Symptom
The Earth Will Shake

While the Beatles cover was awesome, I am not a fan of bands doing covers live. Unless the covers were recorded on an album (a la New Found Glory, Between the Buried and Me, Thrice's OTHER Beatles and Frodus covers), I just feel like it takes away time that the band could be playing their own music.. But that's just me, I guess. Other than that, Thrice put on yet another breathtaking show. It was just weird seeing two shows with them headlining in April/May where they played 20/21 songs during their set to watching them be an opening band once again, only getting 30 minutes to play. Although they only had a short amount of time, they still blew me away.

We met with Dustin again after the show, more awkwardness ensued (I can't talk to that man for anything), but he closed the conversation with a clever quote since I kept apologizing to him: "Don't worry, we're all awkward." Genius.