I have a ten-page research paper to write for tomorrow, but here I am deciding that updating my blog is more of a priority. I really need to sort my life out. Oh well, I just thought I'd write a little bit about the two gigs that I went to this past weekend. I won't be as thorough as I would like due to my time constraints here but I might end up posting a bit more later on.
On Friday, Jan. 16th I hopped on the train to Liverpool with my friend Andy to take in an Architects gig at the infamous Barfly. I'd never been to that venue before, but I'm a sucker for small, intimate concerts and this bar was the perfect choice. Although there was a relatively good turnout, I wouldn't classify the gig as packed. The gig was +14 and it showed, with the crowd consisting of 'scene' girls I would barely think passed for like 12, and to the other extreme, really obnoxious drunk dudes that were just being dicks. (Okay, so this is obviously tainted with a bit of a bias but whatever.) The first opening band was a local Liverpool act, which I didn't really catch but from what most of the tour managers that were floating about said, they weren't very good, and that's me sugercoating what was actually said. Anyways, Canadian band A Textbook Tragedy was up next, and personally I thought their set was great, but according to people I would consider to be 'in the know' about hardcore music, the set consisted of Norma Jean knock-offs. Nonetheless, I was just stoked to see Canadians again, and you best believe I made my presence known and spoke to the guitarist afterwards about how cool we were being from Canada haha. Misery Signals played right before Architects and the crowd obviously enjoyed them. I would agree that their set was immense, but to be honest, I was just completely encompassed in my anticipation for Architects to be critical enough of the opening bands. Finally Architects hit the stage and the room exploded. I always do find it strange however, that there is that wide gap in the middle of the crowd, that defines the moshers from the casual concertgoers who value their safety. The mood of the audience was great though, and I'll admit, I myself partook in bit of a cheeky mosh at the side. The set seemed really short, but they played 'We're All Alone', which is one of their best songs in my opinion, so I was super content at that point. Especially since I was convinced that they wouldn't play anything from their split with Dead Swans. They played a few songs from the first album Nightmares which was unexpected as well but totally rad. If I remember correctly they opened with 'You'll Find Safety' which is also an amazing track. 'Follow the Water' off of their new album Hollow Crown was also performed to great crowd response. The energy and stage presence that Architects brought to their set was sweet, and you can tell that they take their music seriously. After seeing them live, I've totally no doubt that this band is going to be huge. They're really nice guys and the quality of their music just speaks for itself.
Ok so, that's all I have time to discuss right now, but I'll write about my Saturday in London at the immense Dead Swans gig and try to post some videos from both of these shows, once I figure out how to improve the sound quality. The photos I've added here were taken by Ritch.
On Friday, Jan. 16th I hopped on the train to Liverpool with my friend Andy to take in an Architects gig at the infamous Barfly. I'd never been to that venue before, but I'm a sucker for small, intimate concerts and this bar was the perfect choice. Although there was a relatively good turnout, I wouldn't classify the gig as packed. The gig was +14 and it showed, with the crowd consisting of 'scene' girls I would barely think passed for like 12, and to the other extreme, really obnoxious drunk dudes that were just being dicks. (Okay, so this is obviously tainted with a bit of a bias but whatever.) The first opening band was a local Liverpool act, which I didn't really catch but from what most of the tour managers that were floating about said, they weren't very good, and that's me sugercoating what was actually said. Anyways, Canadian band A Textbook Tragedy was up next, and personally I thought their set was great, but according to people I would consider to be 'in the know' about hardcore music, the set consisted of Norma Jean knock-offs. Nonetheless, I was just stoked to see Canadians again, and you best believe I made my presence known and spoke to the guitarist afterwards about how cool we were being from Canada haha. Misery Signals played right before Architects and the crowd obviously enjoyed them. I would agree that their set was immense, but to be honest, I was just completely encompassed in my anticipation for Architects to be critical enough of the opening bands. Finally Architects hit the stage and the room exploded. I always do find it strange however, that there is that wide gap in the middle of the crowd, that defines the moshers from the casual concertgoers who value their safety. The mood of the audience was great though, and I'll admit, I myself partook in bit of a cheeky mosh at the side. The set seemed really short, but they played 'We're All Alone', which is one of their best songs in my opinion, so I was super content at that point. Especially since I was convinced that they wouldn't play anything from their split with Dead Swans. They played a few songs from the first album Nightmares which was unexpected as well but totally rad. If I remember correctly they opened with 'You'll Find Safety' which is also an amazing track. 'Follow the Water' off of their new album Hollow Crown was also performed to great crowd response. The energy and stage presence that Architects brought to their set was sweet, and you can tell that they take their music seriously. After seeing them live, I've totally no doubt that this band is going to be huge. They're really nice guys and the quality of their music just speaks for itself.
Ok so, that's all I have time to discuss right now, but I'll write about my Saturday in London at the immense Dead Swans gig and try to post some videos from both of these shows, once I figure out how to improve the sound quality. The photos I've added here were taken by Ritch.
