Show Review

Pictures

The “Truck Stops and Statelines” tour rolled into Columbus on a cold March evening and for the most part, I was pretty excited. I mean, I knew and enjoy all four of the featured acts on the tour and had become excited over the last year or so that each of them had gained the success and notoriety they deserved. However, along with this success, I knew that the show might be unbearable with the plethora of, well, kids there, possibly making the show unbearable. But I decided to go in with an open mind and not expecting too much.

At about seven o’ clock sharp, Hellogoodbye took the stage to play their blend of pop and techno rock and overall it was an incredibly solid set. Kicking off with the terribly infectious “Call N Return,” lead vocalist Forrest Kline’s voice sounded crisp and full, even after a few months of touring and the instruments were all solid. The guys blazed through almost all the songs on their self-titled EP and played a few others including my personal favorite and yet to be released “Here in Your Arms.” But as they played the last song, people dressed as bottles of tequila and roosters, among other things, rushed the stage and, if you judged by the crowd response, you would have guessed that they were the headliners. The only real qualm I had with the set was the fact they ended with a song that not many people know. (I think it is called, “Touchdown Turnaround”) But other than that, it was a great set.

Next up was Seattle, Washington’s Acceptance. I had seen these guys before and remember being less than impressed. But since then I had taken some people’s advice and after listening to their latest effort, “Phantoms,” I had found myself actually enjoying it, though I wasn’t totally familiar with it yet. But from the beginning of the set, I forgot everything I thought I knew about Acceptance live. Musically, the group was solid and their energy was better than I remembered. Lead vocalist Jason Vena’s vocals sounded great in a club that usually fall short when it comes to vocal acoustics. The guitars were maybe a little too loud but I suppose I am splitting hairs here. They began and ended with the two best songs on the CD, “In Too Far” and “Take Cover” respectively, and when they were done, I was puzzled as to why these guys were not bigger, especially with the help of a major label. Hey Columbia! Wake up and get some push behind these guys.

Panic! at the Disco. It is so easy to hate these guys. They got signed to Pete Wentz’s Decaydance label before playing a single show. They are (really) young. They make all of our girlfriends weak in the knees. I will admit, when I first saw them, I was less than thrilled. But, like the aforementioned group, I found myself enjoying their debut “A Fever You Cant Sweat Out.” But the crowd at the Newport that night seemed poised to watch these Nevada transplants as they rise to the top. The guys took the stage in their signature formal wear and proceeded to make every girl in the audience swoon. Sticking to their debut, the guys played tracks like the upbeat “The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide is Press Coverage” and piano led jingle of “Camisado.” It is clear these guys have worked hard and sharpened their game since I last saw them. They didn’t move around as much as I would have liked them to and didn’t play my favorite track (“Time to Dance”) but there was something else that still made them command my attention. Lead vocalist, Brendon, commanded and serenaded the crowd in an almost Morrissey-like fashion and his voice was much cleaner and crisper than on the CD due to the absence of voice altering production. Kudos to these guys for making me do a 180 and putting on an amazing show.

The Academy Is is one of those bands that kind of fell on me. “Almost Here,” their Fueled by Ramen debut, is a 10 song piece of musical fun. No filler. No intros or outros. Just 32 minutes of great pop writing. I had known William Becket was a genius songwriter for a while but tonight re-solidified what I had almost forgotten about the group. Kicking off with “Attention,” the music filled the room and sent the crowd into a frenzy. They guys flew through all 10 tracks from “Almost Here” along with two new tracks, “Pour Yourself a Drink,” and “The Fever” both tracks from their iTunes only released EP. “Pour Yourself a Drink” stayed acoustic, but “The Fever” was played with a full band. Instrumentally, the band sounded awesome. Both Mike and Tom’s guitar parts flowed together and neither was clearly dominant over the other. It was an incredible balance. The solid rhythm section kept the group intact and kept the music flowing. And of course, the enigmatic frontman, William Beckett, was the conductor in this rock symphony. I was totally floored at the show the guys put on and it was seriously one of the best I have ever seen. It was just great to see these guys play together as a cohesive unit. I believe these guys have a bright future ahead of them. After the emo, screamo, all that crap is gone, these guys have a bright future ahead of them as just a great all around rock band, and they proved it to me yet again that night. After their “last song,” “Almost Here,” Becket came back on and played the beginning of one of my personal favorites, “Down and Out,” before being rejoined by the rest of the band for the end of the song. Before the guy blasted into the closer, “Black Mamba,” Beckett told us, “We aren’t up here for two reasons. It is NOT because my shirt looks cool, or his hair is cool. And it is NOT because of some fucking greedy record company. It is because of you guys. And we will never forget that.” If these guys can keep their noses clean, they have a bright future in front of them. And they deserve it.

Thank you to the beautiful and talented Christina Radi for the photos.

review by Alex Drumm