since 12/22/98
09/04/98 1st & 2nd Church, Boston, MA: Ten Yard Fight, Bane, Fastbreak, Reach the Sky, Open Up
This was a great show. It's rare that at a concert, every band that you get to see is something extraordinary, which was the case at this show.
Open Up opened up (how odd...). Even for an opening band, there was really good crowd response. The North Andover Crew was dancing and singing along. They opened with "By My Side" and played some other tracks off their demo as well as a brand new one. As Fastbreak put it later in the show, Matt Bailey (vocals) has a voice that is different from the average hardcore band. Unfortunately, this show was Rob's last one playing bass.
Reach the Sky played next, and they were just fuckin' unbelievable. Hardcore music with emotional lyrics. They're something else. They played a mix of new and old stuff, from their demo, first 7", and their new (CDep/7") release, "Open Roads & Broken Dreams". The pit was quite violent for these guys, as the FSU crew were fuckin' shit up.
Fastbreak followed Reach the Sky and they continued to keep the show moving. This was their first show in the Boston area after their U.S. tour with TYF. They played a lot of old songs which was quite surprising, but it didn't stop them from getting the crowd moving. They even got everybody to do a "west coast" circle mosh. Recommendation: check this band out if they ever come to a town near you.
After Fastbreak finished, Bane took the stage. These Worcester boys had so much fun on stage, and it really showed in their stage presence. They play a mix of hardcore and metal overlaid with some really melodic and slow pieces. They played my favorites, "Forked Tongue" and "Superhero". As Bill & Ted would say, "Excellent!"
Ten Yard Fight headlined this show, which they deserve to, but it was a little bit of a disappointing finish. Don't get me wrong, I love TYF and I thought that their set was still good, but they didn't seem to play with as much energy as I expected. If you think about it, after a month of touring the U.S. they must be a little tired.