Jimmy Eat World, Panic! At the Disco, Alkaline Trio @ The Forum, Melbourne (25/02/2014)
When considered, the rich tapestry of our spectacular little lives will forever leave us awestricken and humbled in almost every conceivable fashion. A sentence too deep to open a gig review? Bear with me, you pretentious square.
Three years ago in the wonderful city of Berlin, I incidentally shared a hostel (and many beers) with a guitarist from the decent, but long-since disbanded Scene rockers The Hot Lies. Having supported Alkaline Trio at Melbourne’s snug HiFi Bar way back in 2006, the bloke and I shared brilliant memories of what was an absolutely ripper gig. Packed to the rafters, The HiFi was a thrashing sea of dedicated and overjoyed Trio fans. Truly, a memorable crowd by all accounts.
Recently speaking with Dan Andriano of Alkaline Trio some eight years after that very gig, the man sounded truly smitten with the idea of imminently playing club shows down under on equal bill with Panic! At The Disco, and especially Jimmy Eat World. Memories of my interaction with The Hot Lies’ axeman, and Dan’s enthusiasm for tearing up a club show in Australia for the first time since 2011 brought forth both the surging promise of a great show, and a wonderful sense of tapestried connection to live music and the awesome people on either side of the stage that majestically embody it.
In jarring contrast to this feeling, the stoic and unappreciative crowd that glanced at their Facebooks or leered confusedly at Matt, Derek, and Dan as they blasted their way exceptionally through the opening spot on the bill at The Forum did a fine job of quickly squashing the possibility of a spectacular gig. It’s not rocket science; rock shows are team work. You rely on the band to play as well as Alkaline Trio did, and they rely on you to work as hard as you can to tear a joint to the fucking ground. You can’t reach fever pitch at a gig with your dick, iPhone, or chubby girlfriend in hand (that means you, hairy-shoulders-with-man-tits-and-white-singlet-guy). If you’re up the front, you’re in a mosh pit and are required to fuck shit up. A predominantly young and female collective standing still up front merely waiting for Alkaline Trio to finish so they could be closer to Brendon from Panic! when he came on had evidently not bothered to investigate the brilliance of the band they were seeing before their Urie graced the stage.
Don’t get me wrong, Brendon Urie is an immeasurably talented, friendly, and entertaining dude. I’ve interviewed him three times, most recently a few hours before this gig, and he is always smart, funny, and genuinely excited to be there. More so, you’ll know in a paragraph from now how utterly spectacular the man and his band are live. That said, It doesn’t take an idiot to realize that Alkaline Trio would have received a far warmer welcome down the road at The HiFi on Less Than Jake’s bill the following night; a band they even dedicated a song to during their set for helping them get back to our distant and expensive shores. Anyway, the gnarly few who were up front for Alkaline Trio quickly clumped together to appreciatively scream and head bang in unison to the best of their abilities throughout the set, and the band were visibly thankful for it. Shabby crowd aside, Alkaline Trio opened blisteringly with Time To Waste, played some stuff as far back as Goddamnit, blazed through both pitch-black openers from God Mourning and From Here To Infirmary, then jumped albums a few more times with ease before clocking out with Radio. At least at Soundwave the crowd will be all their own.
Half and hour after Alkaline had graced the stage, Panic! At The Disco erupted from the wings, the crowd finally did something, and my despondency was quickly dispelled. It’s easy to see why so many people say they hate Panic!; a band as shamelessly glittery, confident, attractive, addictive and diverse as these guys are bound to ruffle some jealousy feathers amongst the commoners. Perhaps some purists dislike the group’s vitriolic self-assuredness, and hell yes they do like themselves. That said, how the fuck couldn’t you when you’re that good at what you do? It’s easy to forget that it’s nearly been a decade since Brendon and his crew burst out of Las Vegas to immediately polarize the punk rock scene with their inventively eclectic hybrid of vaudeville, EDM, pop, and punk music. Having split with half their founding members two very good albums ago, many naysayers damned front man Urie and his drummer Spencer Smith to sub-par obscurity. Obscurity, rather obviously, is not in Brendan’s vocabulary. Fittingly kicking off with the infectious Time To Dance, it was just that, and the Forum more than obliged.
For the next hour, Brendan was a man possessed, and absolutely loving it. He flung himself about the stage like a shimmering acrobat. Cut slickly in to a sparkling bronze smoking jacket and skin tight leather pants, comparisons between this front man and Howlin’ Pelle from The Hives are unavoidable. Their new material sounds much richer with a live band, the lack of production a club show delivers working wonders for their current fixation with a more electronically-oriented sound. They smashed out a set far livelier and exciting than those languidly delivered while touring Pretty. Odd. through stadiums across Australia back in 2008. Although a lovely album, Melbourne saw a show for more destined for stadiums in future at this Sidewave, thanks to Brendon literally back-flipping his way to assuring not a single person at the gig would hesitate to come back for round two as soon as possible. Although their vocalist utterly stole the show, it must be noted that bassist Dallon Weekes, Spencer Smith, and a nameless supporting guitarist did more than their fair share of enthralling flails, spins, and struts.
All the girls that stood still for Alkaline Trio damn near fainted when Urie removed his shirt, and swaggered through the second half of the set, still a rollicking ball of energy and flair. Although I’ve been personally told by the guy that he loves metal and hardcore, it was still a surprise when Urie suddenly erupted in to a severely convincing guttural growl and began to crash wildly about the stage. All the while his band faultlessly backing him in d-beat heaviness. The previously upbeat set quickly crumpled in to a cripplingly awesome sonic barrage that wouldn’t seem out of place at the last ten minutes of a Glassjaw gig.
I Write Sins Not Tragedies topped off a truly outstanding set, before Panic! finished their domination of the evening and coolly departed stage, leaving a massive void of entertainment for Jimmy Eat World to fill. Being a humble collective of very honest and heart felt musicians, Jimmy Eat World are characteristically less inclined to fire off the mighty and glamourous theatrics Panic! offered. This in no way detracted from their set, but it certainly changed the direction of the evening. The band’s gargantuan list of immediately recognizable and emotionally charged songs were delivered with all engines burning. When you’re music is this truly wonderful and affecting, there isn’t always a need for showy prancing. A career spanning selection of songs open thing in the form of I Will Steal You Back, Big Casino, Appreciation, and Lucky Denver Mint. The flow across an immediately involved and impassioned crowd. Five songs in and the deeply sad Hear You Me soothingly pervades every inch of The Forum’s lofty space. It’s a beautiful rendition that only further assures that Jimmy have their audience by the heart strings hook, line, and sinker. Work, For Me This Is Heaven, Damage, Pain, Blister, and the crowd obliterating Sweetness and Bleed American follow.
Throughout the course of the set Jim, Rick, Tom, and Zack are repetitiously humble, almost struggling to find words to truly define their appreciation for the captivated audience. They return for an encore in the form of Chase This Light, an epic from Futures, and their uplifting classic The Middle, and by the time the lights go up, there’s no doubt the audience feels exactly the same way.
Todd Gingell
@gingerly_done
Three years ago in the wonderful city of Berlin, I incidentally shared a hostel (and many beers) with a guitarist from the decent, but long-since disbanded Scene rockers The Hot Lies. Having supported Alkaline Trio at Melbourne’s snug HiFi Bar way back in 2006, the bloke and I shared brilliant memories of what was an absolutely ripper gig. Packed to the rafters, The HiFi was a thrashing sea of dedicated and overjoyed Trio fans. Truly, a memorable crowd by all accounts.
Recently speaking with Dan Andriano of Alkaline Trio some eight years after that very gig, the man sounded truly smitten with the idea of imminently playing club shows down under on equal bill with Panic! At The Disco, and especially Jimmy Eat World. Memories of my interaction with The Hot Lies’ axeman, and Dan’s enthusiasm for tearing up a club show in Australia for the first time since 2011 brought forth both the surging promise of a great show, and a wonderful sense of tapestried connection to live music and the awesome people on either side of the stage that majestically embody it.
In jarring contrast to this feeling, the stoic and unappreciative crowd that glanced at their Facebooks or leered confusedly at Matt, Derek, and Dan as they blasted their way exceptionally through the opening spot on the bill at The Forum did a fine job of quickly squashing the possibility of a spectacular gig. It’s not rocket science; rock shows are team work. You rely on the band to play as well as Alkaline Trio did, and they rely on you to work as hard as you can to tear a joint to the fucking ground. You can’t reach fever pitch at a gig with your dick, iPhone, or chubby girlfriend in hand (that means you, hairy-shoulders-with-man-tits-and-white-singlet-guy). If you’re up the front, you’re in a mosh pit and are required to fuck shit up. A predominantly young and female collective standing still up front merely waiting for Alkaline Trio to finish so they could be closer to Brendon from Panic! when he came on had evidently not bothered to investigate the brilliance of the band they were seeing before their Urie graced the stage.
Don’t get me wrong, Brendon Urie is an immeasurably talented, friendly, and entertaining dude. I’ve interviewed him three times, most recently a few hours before this gig, and he is always smart, funny, and genuinely excited to be there. More so, you’ll know in a paragraph from now how utterly spectacular the man and his band are live. That said, It doesn’t take an idiot to realize that Alkaline Trio would have received a far warmer welcome down the road at The HiFi on Less Than Jake’s bill the following night; a band they even dedicated a song to during their set for helping them get back to our distant and expensive shores. Anyway, the gnarly few who were up front for Alkaline Trio quickly clumped together to appreciatively scream and head bang in unison to the best of their abilities throughout the set, and the band were visibly thankful for it. Shabby crowd aside, Alkaline Trio opened blisteringly with Time To Waste, played some stuff as far back as Goddamnit, blazed through both pitch-black openers from God Mourning and From Here To Infirmary, then jumped albums a few more times with ease before clocking out with Radio. At least at Soundwave the crowd will be all their own.
Half and hour after Alkaline had graced the stage, Panic! At The Disco erupted from the wings, the crowd finally did something, and my despondency was quickly dispelled. It’s easy to see why so many people say they hate Panic!; a band as shamelessly glittery, confident, attractive, addictive and diverse as these guys are bound to ruffle some jealousy feathers amongst the commoners. Perhaps some purists dislike the group’s vitriolic self-assuredness, and hell yes they do like themselves. That said, how the fuck couldn’t you when you’re that good at what you do? It’s easy to forget that it’s nearly been a decade since Brendon and his crew burst out of Las Vegas to immediately polarize the punk rock scene with their inventively eclectic hybrid of vaudeville, EDM, pop, and punk music. Having split with half their founding members two very good albums ago, many naysayers damned front man Urie and his drummer Spencer Smith to sub-par obscurity. Obscurity, rather obviously, is not in Brendan’s vocabulary. Fittingly kicking off with the infectious Time To Dance, it was just that, and the Forum more than obliged.
For the next hour, Brendan was a man possessed, and absolutely loving it. He flung himself about the stage like a shimmering acrobat. Cut slickly in to a sparkling bronze smoking jacket and skin tight leather pants, comparisons between this front man and Howlin’ Pelle from The Hives are unavoidable. Their new material sounds much richer with a live band, the lack of production a club show delivers working wonders for their current fixation with a more electronically-oriented sound. They smashed out a set far livelier and exciting than those languidly delivered while touring Pretty. Odd. through stadiums across Australia back in 2008. Although a lovely album, Melbourne saw a show for more destined for stadiums in future at this Sidewave, thanks to Brendon literally back-flipping his way to assuring not a single person at the gig would hesitate to come back for round two as soon as possible. Although their vocalist utterly stole the show, it must be noted that bassist Dallon Weekes, Spencer Smith, and a nameless supporting guitarist did more than their fair share of enthralling flails, spins, and struts.
All the girls that stood still for Alkaline Trio damn near fainted when Urie removed his shirt, and swaggered through the second half of the set, still a rollicking ball of energy and flair. Although I’ve been personally told by the guy that he loves metal and hardcore, it was still a surprise when Urie suddenly erupted in to a severely convincing guttural growl and began to crash wildly about the stage. All the while his band faultlessly backing him in d-beat heaviness. The previously upbeat set quickly crumpled in to a cripplingly awesome sonic barrage that wouldn’t seem out of place at the last ten minutes of a Glassjaw gig.
I Write Sins Not Tragedies topped off a truly outstanding set, before Panic! finished their domination of the evening and coolly departed stage, leaving a massive void of entertainment for Jimmy Eat World to fill. Being a humble collective of very honest and heart felt musicians, Jimmy Eat World are characteristically less inclined to fire off the mighty and glamourous theatrics Panic! offered. This in no way detracted from their set, but it certainly changed the direction of the evening. The band’s gargantuan list of immediately recognizable and emotionally charged songs were delivered with all engines burning. When you’re music is this truly wonderful and affecting, there isn’t always a need for showy prancing. A career spanning selection of songs open thing in the form of I Will Steal You Back, Big Casino, Appreciation, and Lucky Denver Mint. The flow across an immediately involved and impassioned crowd. Five songs in and the deeply sad Hear You Me soothingly pervades every inch of The Forum’s lofty space. It’s a beautiful rendition that only further assures that Jimmy have their audience by the heart strings hook, line, and sinker. Work, For Me This Is Heaven, Damage, Pain, Blister, and the crowd obliterating Sweetness and Bleed American follow.
Throughout the course of the set Jim, Rick, Tom, and Zack are repetitiously humble, almost struggling to find words to truly define their appreciation for the captivated audience. They return for an encore in the form of Chase This Light, an epic from Futures, and their uplifting classic The Middle, and by the time the lights go up, there’s no doubt the audience feels exactly the same way.
Todd Gingell
@gingerly_done