THE DIRTY DOZEN: Streetlight Manifesto's Greatest Songs

Felipe M

It's no secret around these parts; we love the band Streetlight Manifesto.  They're the only ska band that matters, as far as I'm concerned.  

Was going to release the 12 GREATEST STREETLIGHT MANIFESTO SONGS EVER when The Hands that Thieve was supposed to be released.  I was one of many people that actually pre-ordered the album directly from the band's website.  Then Victory Records decided to add yet another rift between them and the band.  So now I have to wait to see what happens with my order.  Will probably just donate the money to the band.  

Anyway, it's only 12 songs because I'm only ranking the songs from their albums Everything Went Numb and Somewhere in the Between.  Both albums combined have 22 total tracks so I decided to only pay special attention to 12 songs.  I'll try to write a few thoughts of these great songs, but most definitely will be turning some of my favorite lyrics into "quote form" so you, the reader, can show off to your friends and family.  

And now, in reverse order:

12.  "Watch It Crash":  A really fast song with a very catchy hook, "So mercy, mercy, mercy me!"  I have this vibe that this song might be of living life without regret and just continuing to tread along forward, even when life makes you slip, stumble, and crash.  At least that's what I come up with as I don't have the CD jacket that included the liner notes to every track of this album readily available.  

Quote: "We can't just blame it on our mothers, claiming everything they did was always wrong." 

11.  "The Saddest Song": Usually when a band titles a track "The Saddest Song," it's usually a sappy, slow, gut-wrenching, angst-filled, and most depressing song you will ever hear.  This song, however, is fast, upbeat, and the lyrics are presented in a non-depressing way.  I can remember listening to this song plenty of times and felt much better about my life.  I believe it's because this song is not so much "sad" as it is realistic; you can try to control things all you want, but life will always throw unexpected challenges at you.  I guess that in itself is the "sad" part about life, but I always took it more as a reminder of what life really is all about: overcoming obstacles.  

Quote: "I'm off to save the world once again, but I don't know how I'll pull it off this time."

10.  "We Will Fall Together": The opening track to ...in the Between, this track goes out of its way to spit at the Judeo-Christian notions of the afterlife and what happens to our mind and soul when our bodies finally give out.  Plus it proclaims, confidently, that when we pass on as humans, there will be no higher life form to "catch us so we'll [have to] catch ourselves" as we'll have to rely on each other instead of a higher power that was never there to begin with.  I really like how Thomas Kalnoky incorporates biblical verses into the song in a sort of sarcastic manner: "And only then will we be free/And up will rise the meek" and "And we know not what we do."  Plus it's pretty cool when they play this song live and the crowd sings the "We can only look away (away, AWAY, away, AWAY, away...)."  

Quote: "So how will we fight?  All we have is logic and love on our side."

9.  "Everything Went Numb": I'm pretty sure when people hear this sax intro, they automatically know that it's the first track to the album of the same name.  From what I remembered, Thomas had mentioned that this was literally a song about a bank robbery.  I'm pretty sure there are lessons to be learned here, but you go ahead and figure them out.

QUOTE: "Bet on the Feds because the black-hat men never win in the end."

8.  "Point/Counterpoint": I'm pretty sure people are going to be mad that this isn't listed as the #1 on this list.  I would argue that listing this song as #1 would diminish the overall work of this band.  Admittedly, "Everything Went Numb" and "Point/Counterpoint" were the songs that got me into this band, but when you're talking about the best of the best, there are other tracks in the Streetlight catalog with better lyrics, better crafted songs, and are not as repetitive as this song.  That's just me though.  In regards to the song, it's a story about every type of conflict you can think of: suicide, domestic arguments, gang warfare, guns and violence, you name it.  

QUOTE: "Some are going to say that we are doomed to repeat all of our past mistakes."

7. "Forty Days": One of the slower songs that I actually enjoy from the band.  From what I remembered, ...in the Between is an album that challenges religious (mostly Christian) conventional thought.  The song's title is a reference to the story from the New Testament of the Bible, but then again, throughout the Bible, the number 40 is used liberally as a symbol.

This song is littered with Christian overtones (i.e. "I've tasted seven sins, so they won't let me in") and questions a lot of the foundation of Christianity. 

QUOTE: "What a waste!  So many decent people at the gates."

6. "That'll Be the Day": Another song about suicide (or suicide prevention?).  It's a fast-paced song with great sing-alongs despite the somber subject matter and a great climax:

"Gone! Everybody's crying, now you're GONE!

And everybody's missing you: from apathy to sympathy, 

This new found love is new to me.

And I can hear you laughing in your grave."

QUOTE: "Shattering our innocence like a bullet through a glass."

5. "We Are the Few": Not going to delve too deep into the lyrics as this might be the most ambiguous of the band's songs.  I feel like it might be about the death/murder of an innocent, young lady or, as someone explained to me, it could be a couple of songs rolled into one.  Whatever the case may be, the main reason this song is ranked ahead of their more popular work (although it received a great reception when they played it live at this show) is because of the climax portion of the song: 

• "This has been the best night of my life..."

It's always been my favorite part of the song, and probably would be the best part of the album if it wasn't for the next song...

QUOTE: "I don't know where we went wrong, but all I know now is I got to do something right."

2011 BIRTHDAY FORTNIGHT: Part I: Between the Buried and Me

Felipe M

Between the Buried and Me is our favorite metal band out there.  There's no argument.  Whether you consider them a metal band or not (because of their fusion of different genres they install into their music), without a doubt, they're one of the most unique, creative, and talented bands out there.  Even though they released an EP this year, it was just as good as many metal bands' full-lengths, if not better!  With the recent release of The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues as the foundation of their Spring of 2011 tour, we descend on the sleepy town of Joliet, IL and as you can read from the title of this article, we kick off my birthday fortnight (because one day is just not enough!):

APRIL 24, 2011: MOJOES, JOLIET, IL-- Just like we stated in our Streetlight Manifesto article, Mojoes is another bar that does not allow the drinking and sale of alcoholic in the mosh pit area and forces you to go to the 2nd floor of the venue to drink and purchase said beverages.  Again, Ricardo, Devon, and I have only experienced this rule outside the Chicago City Limits so we assume that it's a "suburban" thing.  

As much as we were ready to enjoy an evening of awesome music with The Ocean, Job for a Cowboy, and Between the Buried and Me, we had other things in our mind.  The Chicago Blackhawks were fighting elimination from the Stanley Cup playoffs against their archrival, the Vancouver Canucks.  We actually spent the majority of Job for a Cowboy's set with our backs turned to them because the game was so intense.  Matter of fact, we thank the band for their pulsating blast beats as it was the perfect music to release some anxiety from this tight game as we used our hands to pat them on the bar and were tapping to the rhythm of the double bass.  Shamefully, we also missed half of the beginning of BTBAM's setlist as well as we couldn't help but continually turn our heads to the direction of the TV sets to see the Hawks win in overtime.  

BTBAM started the setlist playing their entire Parallax EP.  They played it near flawlessly as "Specular Reflection" is quickly becoming a great way to start any of their future shows (for the record, the middle of the "Augment of Rebirth" ('TO CREATE, TO RECREATE!') and the xylophone crash in Lunar Wilderness are the best parts of the EP).

They moved on from the EP to play consecutive tracks from Colors, "Sun of Nothing" and "Ants of the Sky" followed by what seemed to be an impomptu jam session of "Swim to the Moon" highlighted by a guitar solo from Paul Waggoner and drum solo by Blake Richardson.  

We also finally got a chance to listen to "Fossil Genera-A Feed from Cloud Mountain Live" and "Selkies: The Endless Obsession" live for the first time in our lives.  

Overall, this was an amazing show with great bands playing great sets, the Blackhawks winning, and a pretty memorable drive down to Joliet, IL (you might remember this crap-tacular town from such references as THE BLUES BROTHERS movie, the famously infamous Joliet Prison, Route 66, etc.).  This would be worthy of gaining the top spot in the pursuit of our annual SHOW OF THE YEAR!

Check out past articles about Between the Buried and Me.

2011 WINTER CONCERT WRAP-UP: Streetlight Manifesto

Felipe M

We love Streetlight Manifesto around these parts.  So when we found out that they would be coming to Durty Nellie's in Palatine, Pathological Hate was all too eager to see them live again.

February 15, 2011: Durty Nellie's, Palatine, IL-- This was the first time I've ever been to Nellie's, much less for a show at this venue.  It is definitely an impressive establishment as there's a bar and grill walled off from the stage area.  Overseeing both sections of this facility is a second floor that provides a good view of the action below--unfortunately the good view is only supplied for a few people as views gets pretty obstructed rather quickly as people try to muscle their way into the best view possible without spilling theirs or anybody else's drink.  Really the only perk to staying on the 2nd floor is that it plays as the designated drinking area as alcoholic beverages are not allowed in the mosh pit area.  Yeah, I couldn't believe it either!  

Nevertheless, the best feature of Nellie's is that it has two impressively sized telescreens which display the show for those people who don't want to get too close to the action.  It is pretty unique for a small venue like Nellie's to have such a feature as it adds to the show's experience.

The second floor is where we watched Terrible Things' full setlist.  Terrible Things is a group compiled from ex-members of Coheed and Cambria and Hot Rod Circuit.  However, the reason why you would know this band is because it's fronted by ex-Taking Back Sunday member, Fred Mascherino.  Admittedly, I recognized Mascherino, but just wasn't sure where I have seen him before.  Weeks after the show is when I realized who he was.  Nevertheless, the band's sound seemed to be "out-dated" and the energy was just lacking, as the songs were very uninteresting.  However, there was a small fan base that was digging the set so all was not totally lost.

If Terrible Things was a necessary evil to endure that night, then Streetlight Manifesto was ready to send us to hell.  Just like at the show at The Metro in July (of 2010), the mosh pit area was hot!  We're in the middle of winter, but the mosh pit was scorching and humid like a tropical jungle.  The crowd was simply amazing as they knew almost every word to every song and never stopped moving.  No band can constantly keep the crowd moving like Streetlight Manifesto.  I myself had to take a long water break midway through the show as the heat was unforgiving.

As far as the band goes, they are simply marvelous.  The band's setlist was similar to the one in July, 2010, with a few additions here and there, most noticeably  their cover of NOFX's "Linoleum" and a personal favorite of mine, "Failing, Flailing".  Just like the show in July, they synthesized "Point/Counterpoint" with "Keasbey Nights"--that never gets old!  They finished their set with what's quickly becoming my favorite song all time from the band, "Somewhere in the Between."  The encore featured "Linoleum" and just like in July, ended with "The Big Sleep." 

It was a cold, drizzly, winter's day in the Chicagoland area, and it was about two weeks after the biggest snowstorm in Chicago, but the hottest place to be in mid-February of 2011 was at Durty Nellie's as Streetlight Manifesto put out another bombastic show for a terrific crowd.

Make sure to check out last year's 1st Quarter Concert Wrap-Up.

Streetlight Manifesto has also recorded their version of Bad Religion's "Skyscraper."  Be sure to check out our countdown of the 50 GREATEST BAD RELIGION SONGS EVER.

Find out what Devon was also doing during the month of February as he covered the 2011 Chicago Auto Show.

2010 SHOW OF THE YEAR

Felipe M.

In what seemed to be taking forever, we finally close out the 2010 Pathological Hate Concert Calendar by counting down towards the much anticipated "SHOW OF THE YEAR." My original goal was to attend at least one show per month. Needless to say, that goal was not directly met, however, I was able to attend THIRTEEN concerts last year averaging to about ONE show per MONTH. I do not know if I would be able to do it again in 2011, especially with so many shows to attend, but little money or time to attend them all, 2011 is off to a rocky start, but let's go back one more time to last year as I rank my least favorite shows and quickly work my way to my favorite show of last year.

13. January 9--Battery (Metallica tribute band) and Skulls (Misfits tribute band) @ Reggie's Rock Club: Devon, Ricardo, and my old college buddy, Mike saw two mediocre local bands and a Misfits cover band with a chick for a bassist. The Misfits cover band played old favorites, but were either super-nervous or inexperienced as there were more instrument malfunctions than at a second-hand music store. What they lacked in musicianship they made up in soul as it was clear that the band enjoyed playing these punk rock staples. On the other hand, Battery played Metallica songs, old and new, note for note, chord for chord, and word for word. Unfortunately, they did all this a little too well as the songs became too boring to listen to and the band, at times, looked liked robots on stage.


12. March 26--Unearth @ House of Blues: I came back from San Diego on this same day to catch this band perform live for the first time ever. I was exhausted from the flight and the long train ride to downtown Chicago so maybe this show was not the best thing for me, theretofore. I was pleasantly surprised that the majority of their setlist contained songs from my favorite album The Oncoming Storm. However, the crowd was terrible and seeing the band "beg" the audience to raise the energy level was just plain sad.


11. July 3--Against Me! @ JBTV Studios: A band that I almost lost all interest in coming into the year performed a short, but solid set in front of a live, but small studio audience for the taping of an episode of JBTV. Unfortunately, the crowd was as stiff as statues as even old favorites such as "Pints of Guiness Makes You Stronger" did nothing to get the crowd going. The new songs from the album White Crosses were surprisingly good enough for me to buy the album that same week. It was later reported that the band was no longer signed to their major label, a great sign for all Against Me! fans everywhere.


10. July 10--Silverstein, Emery, and We Came as Romans @ The Metro: We Came as Romans sounded like every band that has broke out on the national scene in the last 3 years and their set did nothing to leave an impression on me except to refer to them as The Devil Wears Prada-lite. Emery, without question, was the best band of the night. Even though most of their setlist consisted of songs from their latest album, ...In Shallow Seas We Sail, their set was more varied and extremely intense and full of energy and the crowd was solid considering that Emery is a band that is attempting to garner a diverse following. Silverstein, the headlining band, did not impress much and their sets are starting to become very predictable. The new songs, for the most part were dull live and Shane Told's voice sounded horrible, especially the clean vocals, but in his defense, all the bands' clean vocals sounded awful and the blame has to go to The Metro on that one.


9. March 21--Bad Religion @ House of Blues San Diego: The second night and final night of my Bad Religion trek to San Diego ended relatively subpar as I was still hurting from the previous show (stay tuned). I came in late, probably missed a few songs and decided to take a backseat and not get too involved with the crowd, but overall a solid night nonetheless.


8. September 4--A Wilhelm Scream and Counterpunch @ Reggie's Rock Club: Local band Counterpunch gave a monumental performance as they performed a mixture of their old, pop-punk songs with what seemed to be their newer, more technical and politically charged songs. A Wilhelm Scream completed another consistent show, but seeing this band twice before, I have seen them do better. A lot of old favorites were cut out to make room for the very successful self-titled EP that came out last year, but to me, the wrong songs from the EP were performed. Nevertheless, the band's discography is comparable to a basketball team with a deep bench as any track they play live will sound amazing. Also, the band was able to host a bigger crowd, but again, I've seen better crowds attend their shows.


7. July 2--Streetlight Manifesto @ The Metro: It was blazing at The Metro that night--literally it was hot as hell with so many people in the mosh pit area jamming to the band's music. I decided to stand on the sidelines for this one and I could still feel the heat. The setlist was solid and full of the ska-punk band's classics. The ranking is a little low for a show of this caliber, considering that it passes every parameter needed to make a great show, but I think what's holding this show back is the fact that I wasn't too involved with the crowd and I didn't get a chance to see any other bands. Then again, I'm not a big fan of ska music so maybe it was for the best that I didn't see any other bands that night. Unless of course it's Streetlight Manifesto.
6. January 16--88 Fingers Louis, The Boll Weevils, and Agent Orange @ Reggie's: The reason this show had a higher ranking was due to the quantity of bands that played that night. Not mentioned on the list was the first band Ricardo and I saw, She Likes Todd who was pretty decent. But ultimately, this show kicked off our concert calendar back into course with the return of 88 Fingers Louie AND Agent Orange, both bands could be considered as significant to the genre. Agent Orange was simply the best band of the night showing that they still had enough to blow the roof out of venues. Boll Weevils were simply, extremely aggressive and fun to watch. And seeing 88 Fingers Louie back together again was a treat as they are a very important band for the Chicago punk rock scene. This show felt like a history museum and that's not being disrespectful, rather it's a metaphor on how honored I was to be able to attend.

5. June 12--Thrice @ House of Blues: 4th time seeing this band live and they did not disappoint. Thrice mostly played songs from their awesome release Beggars and from their most recent releases, such as The Alchemy Index and Vheissu. But the real highlight of the night came when they played a song I thought I would never see them play live in my lifetime, "To Awake and Avenge the Dead." Without a doubt, one of the most single, thrilling concert moments in my life.

4. March 20--Bad Religion @ House of Blues, San Diego: The thing that stood out the most at this show was just how crazy the crowd was--and how big and overweight the people of San Diego are. I was getting tossed around like a rag doll at this show and it wasn't bad enough that I had one bad left knee, but this one kid kept hitting my right knee with his--in the same song! I went to the hotel beaten, bruised, but satisfied as the band went deep into their 30 years worth of music catalog and put on a fantastic show.
3. October 8--Bad Religion, The Lawrence Arms, Circle Jerks, and Bouncing Souls @ The Congress Theatre: The Chicago crowd was a lot tamer than the one in San Diego, but not by that much as Bad Religion shined brightest with a much larger crowd for RiotFest 2010. Also, the bands that played beforehand could have gone on a tour of their own and would have sold out a lot smaller venues with hometown heroes Lawrence Arms, punk rock legends Circle Jerks, and one of the few tolerable groups of people to ever come out of New Jersey, The Bouncing Souls as even a toe injury to their lead singer couldn't stop them from sounding amazing.

The top 2 shows of last year happened very early in 2010 and a lot of mulling, discussions, and arguments between Devon, Ricardo, and I have led me with more questions than answers. On the one hand, Between the Buried Me, the crowd was absolutely superb as they fed the band energy and encouragement throughout their very long set. However, The Dillinger Escape Plan brought the show to the audience as band members walked on top of the audience, guitarists were playing on top of the bar, and the bassist hung from the venue's rafters only to ultimately fall face down into his own near death. For the majority of the year, Between the Buried and Me had the edge at #1, but after 12 months the show that stood out and that we still talk about is The Dillinger Escape Plan.
2. January 24--Between the Buried and Me @ House of Blues: It is amazing how this band can play their 10+ minute songs to perfection live. The wave of sound that comes out of this band must be experienced for any music lover in general. Most of the band's setlist was from the uber-phenomenal album The Great Misdirect climaxing with the epic "Disease, Injury, Madness." If that wasn't enough, the band also performed fan favorites "Alaska" and "Ants of the Sky." The show must have lasted about an hour and a half, a lot of time given to an indie band of this caliber to do what they do best and that's rock the house out.
1. April 2--The Dillinger Escape Plan and Darkest Hour @ Reggie's Rock Club: I must preface this by saying that for the entire show, my friends and I were standing all the way back by the bar as we were content to watch the show from a distance. Plus it was packed at Reggie's. Already a very small venue, I have never seen this place this full to the brim before. Darkest Hour was great playing a great mix of old and new songs alike and I even got to talk to vocalist John Henry after the show. However, the band that stole the show, hell even the year went to The Dillinger Escape Plan as they took the show to the crowd--not begging the audience to get into the music, but basically just punching us in the throat unexpectedly and holding our attention until they were done with us. Never have I seen a band make the audience move from the front row all the way to the back where we were by the bar--hell, I was dancing to their songs and I know I wasn't the only one. Never could I imagine dancing along to complex, jazz-influenced, odd time signatures before, but it happened! If that wasn't enough, the light show that complemented the band was astonishing. I really don't care much for the lighting of these shows, but the work done that night was so appropriate and simply unforgettable.
One of the shows that we are going to is Deftones at the Riv in Chicago and opening up for them is The Dillinger Escape Plan and admitedly, I'm more excited about seeing The Dillinger Escape Plan at this show than the headlining Deftones. And Deftones put on amazing shows as well so that already will be a front runner for the 2011 Show of the Year.
Venue of the Year, without a doubt, was Reggie's Rock Club on State St. near the "Happiest Place on Earth," Chinatown. The bar next door has the same aesthetics as the concert hall, but with a million TVs, it is a sports fans' paradise. Drinks are relatively cheap considering the location of the place and the venue is very intimate and with a sloping mosh pit, it is damn near impossible to not get a good view of the stage.
I definitely look forward to more shows in 2011 and have already seen Thursday perform their album Full Collapse in its entirety and will get my second dose of Streetlight Manifesto after Valentine's Day. Feel free to share your favorite concert going experience of last year.

Summer Live Part II: Streetlight Manifesto

Felipe M



The following article is part of an ongoing series to wrap up my 2010 second half concert calendar. The next band to be featured is ska band (the term ska will be used interchangeably to describe the genre of ska-punk music) STREETLIGHT MANIFESTO.




July 2nd-Streetlight Manifesto @ The Metro: I’ve been waiting for a very long time to see this band live and finally had the pleasure of catching their performance over the summer. In an effort to hype this band to get more of my friends to attend this show, I created a few taglines to generate interest:

• THE BEST SKA-PUNK BAND IN THE BUSINESS
• IT’S SKA MUSIC WITHOUT THE SIDE-EFFECTS OF LISTENING TO SKA MUSIC
• SKA MUSIC FOR THE THINKING EVERYMAN
• PROGRESSIVE SKA MUSIC AT IT’S BEST
• NOT YOUR OLDER BROTHER’S SKA MUSIC
• THE ONLY SKA BAND THAT MATTERS

For those that don’t know who Streetlight Manifesto are, they are obviously a ska-punk band (that’s how I would categorize this band) whose biggest contribution to the scene is how easily their music transcends and streamlines from one music community to another. Their musical releases have received very high critical acclaim and strong word of mouth from not only the “ska community,” but also from music fans who loathe the musical genre (including this particular author). I believe the thing that separates this band from other ska bands like Reel Big Fish (I hate those guys) is that Streetlight have a more intricate, complex sound with relatively dark lyrics and subject matter, ironically done from an upbeat rhythm, that go beyond the typical ska songs (the ones that I have heard at least) about love, partying, and white, middle class, teenage angst. It’s like listening to Rancid, but--with a horns section (just kidding)—without the over-the-top Joe Strummer-like vocals. Their latest release is a collection of cover songs called 99 Songs of Revolution.


Coming at the heels of success from having so many people come out for the Thrice concert, I was able to talk a co-worker and her boyfriend to come out to the show, only for them to cancel at the last minute, which left me with two extra tickets in my hand. That would open the door for my girlfriend to come out for our SECOND SHOW EVER AS A COUPLE! Wow! After 5 years not attending a single show, we’re together for two in a row? “Wow” is definitely the word! So she was able to snatch one ticket, and I was able to sell the other ticket to a friend of a friend of a friend—of a friend? Plus my usual posse, Ricardo and Devon, were there as well bringing the total to four in the group.


For this show, I just stood on the sidelines and watched from a flanked position. It was hot at The Metro that night. I wasn’t even in the pit area and I was profusely sweating. Naturally, as the show went on, it got muggier, more boiling, sweltering, sultry, scalding, oven-like, (add your own adjective here). And of course, the reason it was so hot for the standing-room only crowd was because Streetlight Manifesto was lighting The Metro on fire from the stage.


(For this show’s setlist, click here) The band did a good job balancing out the song selection from both Everything Goes Numb, Keasbey Nights, and Somewhere in the Between. (If I were this universe’s sultan, I would proclaim that every band that wants to perform live HAS TO find a way to balance their setlist in this manner). The only song done from Revolutions was a cover of the Dead Milkmen’s song, “Punk Rock Girl.” During their performance of the song, I slyly used that time to serenade my girlfriend:

Punk rock girl give me a chance

Punk rock girl let's go slamdance

We'll dress like Minnie Pearl

Just you and me punk rock girl

Not even an artist would have been able to erase the smile from her face as I sang to her. Take notes fellas. Other highlights of this show was something that has gone on without much of my attention as it has become clearly empirical that the songs “Point/Counterpoint” and “Keasbey Nights” sound pretty damn similar. Observe if you will:

• Point/Counterpoint-- “I've got a gun in my hand but that gun won't cock

And my finger's on the trigger but that trigger seems locked

and I can't stop staring at the tick tock clock

and even if I could I would never give up.

With a vest on my chest, a bullet in my lung

I can't believe I'm dying with my song unsung.

And if and when I die won't you bury me alone?

'Cause I'll never get to heaven if I'm singing this song.”

• Keasbey Nights—“ When they come for me, I'll be sitting at my desk

With a gun in my hand, wearing a bulletproof vest singing

"My, my, my, how the time does fly, when you know you're going to die

By the end of the night." And said hey”

Streetlight did a great job putting both songs together and seamlessly streamlining from “Point” to “Keasbey” and finishing strong with “Point.” It was a very cool experience to have both songs played together in that manner.


Another highlight of this show was when they played “We Are the Few,” which starts out in a fast-paced, verse-chorus-verse-chorus pattern before it slows down. Right before it gets to the “slow” part, I turn to my girlfriend and tell her, “This has been the best night of my life.” She grinned and asked, “Why? Because I’m here with you tonight?” The timing of the whole sequence was perfect as lead singer/guitarist Thomas starts crooning “This has been the best night of my life…” The look on her face as she rolled her eyes away from me was priceless. It is little things like this that makes going to these shows so enjoyable.


One exchange that occurred during the show happened between my girlfriend and I when frustrated and bothered by the heat and the long, unfamiliar songs, she turned to me and asked “All these songs sound the same! How can you tell them apart?” I thought about it for a second and replied “Repetition. How else do you tell apart one shitty Brittney Spears song from another? You hear the songs 40-50 times per day on the radio. The same rule applies.” I don’t think she was satisfied with that answer, but by the end of the night, my bubblegum pop-oriented girlfriend was observing how the people in the pit were dancing along to the songs and she picked up on it rather quickly and started emulating the dance rather well. She’s such a closet skank.


Overall, it was a great show, but I do wish they would have played “Failing, Flailing.” I also thought I could go on without having to listen to Keasbey Nights, but now I’m more curious about this album and will probably go get it. This show has potential to end the year in the top 5 of my rankings.