The Gaslight Anthem, Rival Schools, Fake Problems
Palladium Showroom
October 8, 2010
Better than: staying home and watching the 20/20 special that spoiled the twist of Catfish.
And it's something far beyond what the Warped Tour crowd wants.
The crowd that came out Friday night only filled half of the floor at
the Palladium, but, nonetheless, they were incredibly dedicated to seeing the band.
Whether it was singing along to every word or clapping along without any
encouragement by a band member, those that came got nearly 30 songs out
of a two-hour set.
Taking stage five minutes before 10 o'clock, with Meat Loaf's "You Took the Words
Right Out of My Mouth" playing on the P.A., the band promptly jumped in
headfirst with "Stay Lucky" from their most recent release, American
Slang. With only three albums and an EP in their catalog, it was safe to
say no favorites were skipped over; whether it was "Old Haunts,"
"1930" or "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues," the longtime fans and new fans
got their hard-earned money's worth.
There were drawbacks, though. A major one was how the band really
mellowed out during the slower material. Quite often, an uptempo number
would follow shortly thereafter, but as far as pacing, it felt a little
jarring. Add that in with a muffled stage sound coming from the P.A. and
couple that with frontman Brian Fallon's tangents doubling as stories,
parts of the set felt tedious--especially early into the set, when
Fallon had a roadie play his guitar for a few songs. He also told a few
dreamt-up stories involving B.B. King and Albert King that rambled on
and on. Another story was about the infamous Chelsea Hotel in New York,
made famous by Leonard Cohen as well as Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen.
How these stories were told seemed straight out of the Springsteen
playbook for between-song banter, along with how Tom Waits tells random
stories on Late Night With David Letterman.
Given the size of the crowd, the band could afford to be a little more intimate
with the audience. Whether it was taking suggestions for their encore or
Fallon showing a fan with a Bouncing Souls shirt that he had a Bouncing
Souls tattoo on his left arm, the band wasn't playing to the exit
signs.
The band ended their main set with a high point (the title track from
The '59 Sound) and they finished their encore with another one ("The
Backseat," the final song from The '59 Sound). One other highlights
included a cover of Farside's "Hope You're Unhappy," a song that,
according to Fallon, was a big influence on them when they were in their
formative punk rock years. Being around East Coast hardcore and
post-hardcore bands like Farside and Lifetime, it only makes sense that
the band would pay tribute. The Gaslight Anthem carries on such a
tradition, doing their own kind of rock that can't be pegged squarely
into one kind of demographic. And that's a good thing.
Openers Fake Problems came out at 8 o'clock and the four-piece looked like they
just graduated high school. But the sound they had was incredibly mature
and sophisticated, and quite enjoyable. The first half of their set
came across as blend of two bands you never thought could be blended
together: Against Me! (circa Searching for a Former Clarity) and The
Cure (circa the late 1980s). There was a lot of toe-tapping to the
twisted marching drumbeats and the zestfully poppy material. Overall, a
very satisfying 30-minute set.
Rival Schools had a sound that wasn't exactly in line with The Gaslight
Anthem or Fake Problems, but they sure as hell made up for that with
connecting with the crowd.
Frontman Walter Schreifels led his band
through five songs from 2001's United By Fate and previewed five new
songs from their forthcoming album, Pedals, out next year. Asking the
crowd about the sound mix as well as asking people what they were going
to dress up as for Halloween, Schreifels talked the audience as people
instead of mindless drones anxiously awaiting the headliner. The new
material sounded quite good, mixing the best elements of United by Fate
along with previous bands Schreifels has been a part of, Quicksand and
Walking Concert.
One can only hope these guys come back soon. The last time
they came to Dallas was in 2002, sandwiched on a set at Trees with Red
Animal War and Burning Airlines.
Critic's Notebook
(Tremendous) Personal Bias:
If you were at the show and saw some dude
standing near the center of the stage going nuts while Rival Schools
played, that was me. United By Fate is one of my favorite records of all
time and Schreifels has to be one the best interviews I've ever
experienced.
Random Note: Before Rival Schools started their sixth song, Schreifels
noticed a very young member of the audience, a boy who looked to still
be in elementary school. Politely joking with him about how he got in
the venue with his father, Schreifels and drummer Sammy Siegler gave the
youngster a spare pair of drumsticks. Nice touch.
Random Note: I don't know many Farside songs, but I was familiar
with "Hope You're Unhappy." I think I might have been the only one kinda
losing it while Gaslight played the song.