mybreakingpoint
05/14/06, 02:26 PM
I'm still just waking up after getting home from this show, so I apologize for any unintelligability or grammar mistakes. I apologize for it's length, as well.)
1. Arrived at Headliner's in Toledo at 4, almost got shot at McDonald's, then went inside at 5 to see the pre-show.
2. I didn't pay attention to the pre-show all that much except for Scenes From A Movie, who were quite entertaining and very much reminded me of Bear Vs. Shark. They're definitely worth checking out.
3. Main stage doors open at 7, We're All Broken starts at 7:45. I unfortunately didn't find anything special about this band whatsoever. I think they've let themselves fall into the mindset of "Since we're from New Jersey, we must sound like this", and allowed themselves to regurgitate the sounds of bands that have been popping out of there for the last 15 years. They switched off between hard-edged screamo with the apparent "new big thing" of having 3 guitarists, and boring post-hardcore songs with no originality. They had decent stage presence (love their one guitarist's hair), but overall, didn't do a single thing in their entire performance to distinguish themselves from the hoard of bands that sound exactly the same as them.
4. mewithoutyou came next, and they were the band I came to see. "Catch For Us The Foxes" had slowly become one of my favorite albums and I couldn't wait to see and hear them live--I was not disappointed. They opened with the opening three songs of "Catch For Us..." consecutively, and then played a new song which I thoroughly enjoyed and made me even more pumped for their new CD--which I didn't believe was possible. They then proceeded to play various songs from "Catch For Us...". They were extremely energetic and fun, and at one point Aaron (Vocals) tied a bunch of flowers (I wasn't familiar with them, so I have no idea what kind they are) to their three mic stands. I'm not entirely sure why, but it was entertaining none the less and I couldn't have been more happy with their performance. (I also met all but the drummer afterwords, and they're all quality guys, especially Aaron who, when I was wating to have him sign my copy of "Catch For Us...", was giving spiritual advice to a few guys who had approached him with some personal issues. I found this extremely admirable, especially when I discovered that he didn't even know the guys. I though they were friends or maybe just acquintances, but afterwards he asked all of them their names. I was blown away by this. I wish all band members were as open and enlightened as he appeared to be.)
5. Minus The Bear followed, and, sad to say, I didn't care for them. Don't get me wrong, they seem to write good music for what it is, but I just couldn't get into it. And it wasn't just because of the music itself; it was even more for the fact that they were squeezed between mewithoutyou and Thursday. Throughout MWY's set, I was getting more and more hyper and energetic and then--CRASH. I was brought right back down when Minus The Bear came on. They just didn't fit. I like "Menos El Oso" when I'm in a certain mood, but certainly not in the one I was in when I was getting pumped for Thursday. So I guess they just kind of brought me down and disappointed me. Not their fault, and as I said, they play good music, but they just weren't a good fit for a show wth MWY and Thursday. At all.
6. Finally. I almost wet myself as Thursday comes out and opens with "Understanding In A Car Crash". Rather than moving around and jumping up and down and shoving everyone around me, I stood watching, probably slightly drooling throughout their entire set, just completely engulfed in their music. I couldn't take my eyes off them, and I'm afraid I may have been drooling. Now, Thursday have never been one of my favorite bands. Top 15, probably. But not Top 10, and not Top 5. But their show was just...amazing. Nothing short of it. Eevery song they played flawlessly. Each song they played was better live than it was recorded. They simply played beautifully and I could not have been more happy. My favorite songs of their set were "Other Side Of The Crash", "Cross Out The Eyes", "Division St.", and my ultimate favorite, the first of their 3 encores, "Jet Black New Year."
7. I bought a second copy of "A City By The Light Divided" for the sole purpose of getting a little green wrist-thingy, and getting to meet Thursday after the show. When I finally got through the line and got to meet them, all I really felt like saying was "Hi. I love you." to everyone, except Geoff, to whom I said "Hi. I REALLY love you.", and who proceeded to give me a hug. They also all signed my CD slips for "Full Collapse", "War All The Time", and "A City By...". I know bands don't generally likebeing treated any differently than regular people after shows, but I couldn't really think of anything else to say, and I didn't want to hold up the line by saying anymore, because I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have stopped talking.
Overall, just seeing Thursday and getting to meet them afterwards made the $20 bucks I had to pay to get in and $40 bucks I had to pay for gas to get there and back more than worth it. Getting to see MWY, and even Minus The Bear, for what they are, were just added bonuses which made the whole experience even more worthwhile. I had such an amazing time and highly reccomend that anyone that gets the oppurtunity to go to this tour, or to see any of these bands, should go.
Note: This is all the Shirts For A Cure tour, and you can buy a ton of exclusive shirts at the merch tables from bands like Taking Back Sunday, My Chemical Romance, Rise Against, and a ton of others. I bought a Saves The Day shirt, a Thursday shirt, and a mewithoutyou shirt from them and felt really good about it. If band shirts aren't your thing, they also had a nice "fuck cancer" shirt up for purchase as well.
1. Arrived at Headliner's in Toledo at 4, almost got shot at McDonald's, then went inside at 5 to see the pre-show.
2. I didn't pay attention to the pre-show all that much except for Scenes From A Movie, who were quite entertaining and very much reminded me of Bear Vs. Shark. They're definitely worth checking out.
3. Main stage doors open at 7, We're All Broken starts at 7:45. I unfortunately didn't find anything special about this band whatsoever. I think they've let themselves fall into the mindset of "Since we're from New Jersey, we must sound like this", and allowed themselves to regurgitate the sounds of bands that have been popping out of there for the last 15 years. They switched off between hard-edged screamo with the apparent "new big thing" of having 3 guitarists, and boring post-hardcore songs with no originality. They had decent stage presence (love their one guitarist's hair), but overall, didn't do a single thing in their entire performance to distinguish themselves from the hoard of bands that sound exactly the same as them.
4. mewithoutyou came next, and they were the band I came to see. "Catch For Us The Foxes" had slowly become one of my favorite albums and I couldn't wait to see and hear them live--I was not disappointed. They opened with the opening three songs of "Catch For Us..." consecutively, and then played a new song which I thoroughly enjoyed and made me even more pumped for their new CD--which I didn't believe was possible. They then proceeded to play various songs from "Catch For Us...". They were extremely energetic and fun, and at one point Aaron (Vocals) tied a bunch of flowers (I wasn't familiar with them, so I have no idea what kind they are) to their three mic stands. I'm not entirely sure why, but it was entertaining none the less and I couldn't have been more happy with their performance. (I also met all but the drummer afterwords, and they're all quality guys, especially Aaron who, when I was wating to have him sign my copy of "Catch For Us...", was giving spiritual advice to a few guys who had approached him with some personal issues. I found this extremely admirable, especially when I discovered that he didn't even know the guys. I though they were friends or maybe just acquintances, but afterwards he asked all of them their names. I was blown away by this. I wish all band members were as open and enlightened as he appeared to be.)
5. Minus The Bear followed, and, sad to say, I didn't care for them. Don't get me wrong, they seem to write good music for what it is, but I just couldn't get into it. And it wasn't just because of the music itself; it was even more for the fact that they were squeezed between mewithoutyou and Thursday. Throughout MWY's set, I was getting more and more hyper and energetic and then--CRASH. I was brought right back down when Minus The Bear came on. They just didn't fit. I like "Menos El Oso" when I'm in a certain mood, but certainly not in the one I was in when I was getting pumped for Thursday. So I guess they just kind of brought me down and disappointed me. Not their fault, and as I said, they play good music, but they just weren't a good fit for a show wth MWY and Thursday. At all.
6. Finally. I almost wet myself as Thursday comes out and opens with "Understanding In A Car Crash". Rather than moving around and jumping up and down and shoving everyone around me, I stood watching, probably slightly drooling throughout their entire set, just completely engulfed in their music. I couldn't take my eyes off them, and I'm afraid I may have been drooling. Now, Thursday have never been one of my favorite bands. Top 15, probably. But not Top 10, and not Top 5. But their show was just...amazing. Nothing short of it. Eevery song they played flawlessly. Each song they played was better live than it was recorded. They simply played beautifully and I could not have been more happy. My favorite songs of their set were "Other Side Of The Crash", "Cross Out The Eyes", "Division St.", and my ultimate favorite, the first of their 3 encores, "Jet Black New Year."
7. I bought a second copy of "A City By The Light Divided" for the sole purpose of getting a little green wrist-thingy, and getting to meet Thursday after the show. When I finally got through the line and got to meet them, all I really felt like saying was "Hi. I love you." to everyone, except Geoff, to whom I said "Hi. I REALLY love you.", and who proceeded to give me a hug. They also all signed my CD slips for "Full Collapse", "War All The Time", and "A City By...". I know bands don't generally likebeing treated any differently than regular people after shows, but I couldn't really think of anything else to say, and I didn't want to hold up the line by saying anymore, because I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have stopped talking.
Overall, just seeing Thursday and getting to meet them afterwards made the $20 bucks I had to pay to get in and $40 bucks I had to pay for gas to get there and back more than worth it. Getting to see MWY, and even Minus The Bear, for what they are, were just added bonuses which made the whole experience even more worthwhile. I had such an amazing time and highly reccomend that anyone that gets the oppurtunity to go to this tour, or to see any of these bands, should go.
Note: This is all the Shirts For A Cure tour, and you can buy a ton of exclusive shirts at the merch tables from bands like Taking Back Sunday, My Chemical Romance, Rise Against, and a ton of others. I bought a Saves The Day shirt, a Thursday shirt, and a mewithoutyou shirt from them and felt really good about it. If band shirts aren't your thing, they also had a nice "fuck cancer" shirt up for purchase as well.