I’m exhausted. It’s been awhile since I’ve done a multiple day bender due to the lack of bands wanting to come up to Minnesota to enjoy our beautiful winters. I’m absolutely exhausted but last night was the most perfect ending to my first bender of the year.

The show started out with a punch in the face. Rarity literally made me take a step back. Where have these guys been all my life?! This Canadian band has taken the “best band I’ve never heard of before but got to see on this bender” award. Their energy was great for an opening band that knew majority of the audience had never heard of them before. They gave us a show and made it a good one. Half way into their first song I texted my brother to check them out, I tweeted to all of my followers to give them a listen, I posted on Facebook that everyone should show them some love. I want the world to know this band because they were just that amazing.

Their music was much more on the pop-punk side of things than the other bands last night but deep down, pop-punk music is where my allegiances lay. The crowd didn’t seem to mind that they were a bit different than the rest of the line-up. The crowd was excited and moving for this virtually unknown band. Although they couldn’t sing along and they didn’t know what was coming next, the crowd was doing their best to keep up with the energy radiating from the stage. Like I said, I had never heard of these guys before but can’t wait to see what the future holds for them.

Being As An Ocean was the number one reason why I wanted to go to the show last night. These guys completely killed it the last time I saw them. (You can read all about it here: Wake Up The Dead!) Last night was no different. Joel, the singer, was up to the same antics as last time. He spent maybe one song on stage and the rest of the time in the crowd getting face to face with the people he was instantly surrounded by. I wasn’t ready for it last time, I was ready for it this time. I was a bit afraid that it wouldn’t have them same affect on me that it did last time. I mean, I knew what was coming, it was no surprise. But it was still just as powerful as the last time I saw him.

I won’t go into all the details of their set only because it is a lot like the last time but I will say this: Joel should be a freaking motivational speaker. The way he can command a crowd in unreal. When he talks or sings, the crowd is dead silent other than a few people singing or chanting along. You see, their music mixes spoken word with heavy music. It’s two of my favorite things and Being As An Ocean pulls it off perfectly. Joel has a lot to say but picks his words wisely not only in his lyrics but also when he talks in between songs. Their music makes me feel something that most bands can’t make me feel but I can’t put it into words. Being As An Ocean is, hands down, in my top ten live bands of all time… and I’ve seen a hell of a lot of bands much bigger than these guys. Next time they come through your town, I beg you to go see them.

Between Rarity and Being As An Ocean was Emarosa. These guys are yet another band who had a completely insane live show last night along with great music. Singer Bradley Walden was completely out of control in all of the right ways. He started the show by jumping into the modest crowd where he proceed to roll around on the ground, get piggy back rides from random people in the crowd, good god this guy was everywhere. Even when he was on stage he was insane. He would crawl behind the drumset and then jump over the whole kit… drummer and all. It was impossible to take your eyes off of Bradley because you wanted to know what he was going to do next.

Outside of their live show, Emarosa was musically amazing. The first vocalist of this band was Johnny Craig who has one of the most recognizable voices in the emo world. He is able to hit some of the highest high notes and some of the lowest low notes with no hesitation. The range is ridiculous and the smoothness of his voice went down like a great shot of whiskey. Johnny Craig left the band to focus on other endeavors and I kinda of stopped listening to the band. Johnny’s voice is what made it what it was and in my mind, there was no one else who could do the band justice. Boy, was I wrong. Bradley was as good, if not better, than Johnny vocally. I couldn’t believe my ears. What a great performance from a great band full of talent and energy. I can’t wait to see them again and I hope it’s soon and as a headliner so they are given a full set to truly let loose.

The main reason we were all at the show last night was Silverstein. These guys have been around for ever. I still remember the first time I saw them. It was at Skate North in Des Moines, Iowa and my dad had to drop my friends and I off. A lot has changed since the days of my dad dropping me off and picking me up from shows but Silverstein has not which was more than refreshing to hear and see.

They played everything from the new stuff to the very first song on their very first album (which just so happens to be my favorite song by these guys and a song that defined my angsty teenage years). The look is the same, the skinny black jeans with the bomber jacket and the “emo” hair cut and the lyrics are still just as angsty and depressingly beautiful but seeing them live means so much more now than it did when I was young and just trying to hang out with friends instead of focusing on the experience of a live concert. I may not listen to bands like Silverstein everyday anymore but they had such an impact on my life at such a pivotal time that everytime I go and see them, I instantly remember all of the words and I instantly remember how to move at a show.It’s truly amazing that a band like this has stood the test of time and stayed so true to the band they were when they came out over ten years ago.

I’m exhausted. Getting out of bed this morning to head to work was rough but nights like last night make it more than worth it. I walked into the show wanting to see two of the four bands. I walked out of the show loving four of the four bands. Last night was the best show of this bender… they beat the Coheed & Cambria show. I don’t know how that happened, but it did.

Line Up:

 

Rarity

Emarosa

Being As An Ocean

Silverstein

Venue: Mill City Nights

Sausage Fest Meter-  8.5 out of 10

Broken Bones- None Noticed

Average Age- 25

Spotted Flying Through The Sky- Bodies

Level of Moshing- Moderate

Crowd Surfers- 16

Drink of Choice-PBR

Overall Score- 9.98 out of 10

Show On Deck- I See Stars/ Chunk! No Captain Chunk/ Get Scared/ and oh so many more!