Plain White T's - Mike Leatherwood
Ok yes they are the Plain White T's. Most people know only 1 grossly overplayed song from them. But to quote Don Wagenblast...they are just too cute. I'm going to keep it short here. Plain White T's were much better than I was expecting them to be. First of all they had a HUGE crowd, especially for being the first band of the day. The 7 song setlist was dominated by newer stuff (Rhythm of Love, Irrational Anthem, Boomerang), but they did throw in the old favorites. "Hey There Delilah" was amazing as always, but unfortunately it seemed like half the crowd left after that song and skipped out on the finale, "Hate (I Really Don't Like You). Overall they were pretty good and exceeded my expectations. They won't blow you away but I really did enjoy the set.
Overall Grade: B
SETLIST
2. Boomerang
3. Our Time Now
4. Rhythm of Love
5. 1, 2, 3, 4
6. Hey There Delilah
7. Hate (I Really Don't Like You)
Anberlin- Donald Wagenblast
I saw Anberlin play a side-stage at Bambooozle in 2007, and to this day, its still one of the best live sets I've ever seen. However, seeing the band progress so far since then, I was more than anxious to see what they would have up their sleeves on the main stage. The result, thankfully, was more of the same. Sticking mostly to the stellar Dark is the Way, Light is a Place, Stephen Christian's voice soared throughout the Giants Stadium parking lot, and the band's precision was almost unnoticed in the glow of Christian's stellar vocal performance. Old favorites "Godspeed" and "Paperthin Hymn" were given a new flavor and energy thanks to the strides Anberlin have taken over the years, and this set should stick with anyone who witnessed it for a long time.
Overall Grade: A-
I saw Anberlin play a side-stage at Bambooozle in 2007, and to this day, its still one of the best live sets I've ever seen. However, seeing the band progress so far since then, I was more than anxious to see what they would have up their sleeves on the main stage. The result, thankfully, was more of the same. Sticking mostly to the stellar Dark is the Way, Light is a Place, Stephen Christian's voice soared throughout the Giants Stadium parking lot, and the band's precision was almost unnoticed in the glow of Christian's stellar vocal performance. Old favorites "Godspeed" and "Paperthin Hymn" were given a new flavor and energy thanks to the strides Anberlin have taken over the years, and this set should stick with anyone who witnessed it for a long time.
Overall Grade: A-
SETLIST
1. Godspeed2. We Owe This to Ourselves
3. Paperthin Hymn
4. Never Take Friendship Personal
5. Impossible
6. Pray Tell
7. Closer
8. The Resistance
9. Feel Good Drag
Thrice - Tom Taylor
Thrice has always been known for putting on awesome shows with a variety of setlists. This year at Bamboozle was no exception. Most of the songs played were ones I forgot were even in their library! But I was happy when I heard some of their familiar tunes in "All the World is Mad" and "The Artist in the Ambulance." I was actually disappointed that I wasn't able to hear "Image of the Invisible" but I guess I'll get over that. Thrice is an amazing act live whose presence was felt when they were on stage. I'm actually really looking forward to seeing them headline a show around here soon.
Overall Grade: B+
SETLIST
1. The Weight
2. All the World is Mad
3. Of Dust and Nations
4. The Artist in the Ambulance
5. Silhouette
6. New Song
7. The Earth Will Shake
8. Deadbolt
Thrice has always been known for putting on awesome shows with a variety of setlists. This year at Bamboozle was no exception. Most of the songs played were ones I forgot were even in their library! But I was happy when I heard some of their familiar tunes in "All the World is Mad" and "The Artist in the Ambulance." I was actually disappointed that I wasn't able to hear "Image of the Invisible" but I guess I'll get over that. Thrice is an amazing act live whose presence was felt when they were on stage. I'm actually really looking forward to seeing them headline a show around here soon.
Overall Grade: B+
SETLIST
1. The Weight
2. All the World is Mad
3. Of Dust and Nations
4. The Artist in the Ambulance
5. Silhouette
6. New Song
7. The Earth Will Shake
8. Deadbolt
Circa Survive- Donald Wagenblast
Really no surprises here: Circa Survive are the best live band out there right now, and it isn't even close. Anthony Green and Co. have built a reputation for being as close to their beautifully crafted albums as possible in a live setting, and faced with the biggest stage of their careers, they didn't disappoint in any way. Spanning nearly their entire discography (save for the Appendage EP), Circa Survive garnered a slew of fans young and old for an intense set that saw Anthony Green in the crowd for the final three songs of the set, singing as if he was in the recording studio the band used for Blue Sky Noise. At this point, I think we all know Circa Survive is my favorite band, and I could go on for days about how good this set was. But I can describe it in one word: Flawless.
Overall Grade: A+
SETLIST
1. Through the Desert Alone2. Stop the Fucking Car
3. Oh, Hello
4. The Great Golden Baby
5. Glass Arrows
6. Living Together
7. Imaginary Enemy
8. I Felt Free
9. Get Out
New Found Glory- Donald Wagenblast
You can say you're a fan of the new pop-punk wave, and the likes of Man Overboard, The Wonder Years, and Fireworks are poised to take over the game. But none of those bands would even be around had New Found Glory not carried the torch for pop-punk through its trying times when bands like All Time Low, Mayday Parade, and Forever the Sickest Kids nearly tarnished the genre forever. That being said, its easy to tell New Found Glory have nothing left to prove to anyone, but their set on Saturday was anything but safe. Pulling "Truth of My Youth" out of the vault and bringing Marky Ramone on to play the drums for their cover of "Blitzkreig Bop," the band came out onstage like a bat out of Hell and never let up on the gas pedal, or the intensity. The pits were sweaty and dangerous as ever, and the fans loved every second of it. New Found Glory have been the lone torch-bearers for pop-punk for some time now, and this set proved they still aren't ready to give it up just yet.
Overall Grade: A
You can say you're a fan of the new pop-punk wave, and the likes of Man Overboard, The Wonder Years, and Fireworks are poised to take over the game. But none of those bands would even be around had New Found Glory not carried the torch for pop-punk through its trying times when bands like All Time Low, Mayday Parade, and Forever the Sickest Kids nearly tarnished the genre forever. That being said, its easy to tell New Found Glory have nothing left to prove to anyone, but their set on Saturday was anything but safe. Pulling "Truth of My Youth" out of the vault and bringing Marky Ramone on to play the drums for their cover of "Blitzkreig Bop," the band came out onstage like a bat out of Hell and never let up on the gas pedal, or the intensity. The pits were sweaty and dangerous as ever, and the fans loved every second of it. New Found Glory have been the lone torch-bearers for pop-punk for some time now, and this set proved they still aren't ready to give it up just yet.
Overall Grade: A
SETLIST
1. Understatement2. Don't Let Her Pull You Down
3. Hit or Miss
4. All Downhill From Here
5. Truck Stop Blues
6. Kiss Me (Sixpence None the Richer Cover)
7. Failure's Not Flattering
8. Truth of My Youth
9. Blitzkreig Bop (Ramones Cover)
10. Intro
11. My Friends Over You
Dashboard Confessional - Mike Leatherwood
The wildcard of the day. This may have been one of my favorite sets I saw. Tom and I decided to leave NFG early (didn't have a good spot) and get semi-close for Dashboard. Chris Carrabba started off the set solo and acoustic, playing oldie and fan-favorite "Swiss Army Romance" off their first album of the same title. He then brought the full band out for another non-single, fan favorite "The Good Fight". Then familiar Dashboard came out, with a few of my personal favs, "Don't Wait" and "As Lovers Go". After a mix of songs which included "Screaming Infidelities", Dashboard only had about 10 minutes left in the set (usually 3 songs max). They still had to play "Vindicated", "Hands Down", and "Stolen". Thinking thats how they would end the show, the guys broke into one of the best live covers I have ever heard: Weezer's "El Scorcho". It was a really nice surprise that got the crowd's attention, even those that weren't Dashboard fans. With time for only 2 songs left, I figured we wouldn't hear one of the big 3 previously mentioned. However after playing Stolen and Vindicated (which he intro'd as a song about Spiderman), Carrabba looked at an official as if to say "COME ON GIVE US TIME FOR 1 MORE!". Regardless of what they were told, they finished out the set with an intense version of "Hands Down". A perfect ending to an amazing set.
Overall Dashboard Confessional put on a great show. Carrabba let the crowd sing numerous times without overdoing it (cough, Jared Leto, cough), which really brought another element to the show. I would love to see a full set from them but for 11 songs, setlist was great. I would love to see them again.
Overall Grade: A-
SETLIST
1. Swiss Army Romance2. The Good Fight
3. Don't Wait
4. As Lovers Go
5. Screaming Infidelities
6. Again I Go Unnoticed
7. Remember to Breathe
8. El Scorcho (Weezer Cover)
9. Stolen
10. Vindicated
11. Hands Down
The Gaslight Anthem - Tom Taylor
Hands down (get it?), this was the one band I was looking forward to all day. I heard the Gaslight Anthem perform at this past year's Bonnaroo so I already knew how good they were live. And sure enough, they didn't disappoint. Even though I got to their set halfway through their first song "High Lonesome," they still rocked. They opened their set with a group of songs from The '59 Sound (which, if you don't remember, was the #1 album of 2008 on the Mike and Tom Awesome Show). Their set was quite eclectic, even pulling 2 songs from their EP The Senor and the Queen, "Wherefore Art Thou, Elvis?" and "Blue Jeans and White T-Shirts". One of the highlights of the set was when they started playing "The '59 Sound." I know I was going nuts, the Gaslight Anthem was going nuts, and the crowd was going nuts. It was incredible. These guys sure know how to put on a show, blowing away their performances on their albums and when I saw them earlier last year. If you're looking for a band from New Jersey to be proud of, these are the guys.
Overall Grade: A
SETLIST
1. High Lonesome
2. Old White Lincoln
3. Great Expectations
4. I'da Called You Woody, Joe
5. The Diamond Church Street Choir
6. Wherefore Art Thou, Elvis?
7. Wooderson
8. Bring It On
9. The '59 Sound
10. Miles Davis and the Cool
11. American Slang
12. Drive
13. Blue Jeans & White T-Shirts
14. The Backseat
Hands down (get it?), this was the one band I was looking forward to all day. I heard the Gaslight Anthem perform at this past year's Bonnaroo so I already knew how good they were live. And sure enough, they didn't disappoint. Even though I got to their set halfway through their first song "High Lonesome," they still rocked. They opened their set with a group of songs from The '59 Sound (which, if you don't remember, was the #1 album of 2008 on the Mike and Tom Awesome Show). Their set was quite eclectic, even pulling 2 songs from their EP The Senor and the Queen, "Wherefore Art Thou, Elvis?" and "Blue Jeans and White T-Shirts". One of the highlights of the set was when they started playing "The '59 Sound." I know I was going nuts, the Gaslight Anthem was going nuts, and the crowd was going nuts. It was incredible. These guys sure know how to put on a show, blowing away their performances on their albums and when I saw them earlier last year. If you're looking for a band from New Jersey to be proud of, these are the guys.
Overall Grade: A
SETLIST
1. High Lonesome
2. Old White Lincoln
3. Great Expectations
4. I'da Called You Woody, Joe
5. The Diamond Church Street Choir
6. Wherefore Art Thou, Elvis?
7. Wooderson
8. Bring It On
9. The '59 Sound
10. Miles Davis and the Cool
11. American Slang
12. Drive
13. Blue Jeans & White T-Shirts
14. The Backseat
Taking Back Sunday
Donald Wagenblast- It took the crowd three songs to realize, and it'll take much, much longer to ever forget Taking Back Sunday's ultimate "We're back" declaration: playing Tell All Your Friends their most beloved album, front to back to start off their set. This has never been done at Bamboozle, and given the performance Taking Back Sunday put on, it may never be done again, as the bar is set far too high. While Adam Lazzara's voice was shredded throughout the entire set, the precise performance turned in by the rest of the band (most notably the new/old additions of John Nolan and Shaun Cooper) made up for and carried Lazzara the rest of the way, as fans belted out every song with an increasing energy and emotion, with it all culminating with the fitting closer "MakeDamnSure." Nolan's vocals added even more emotion to songs like "A Decade Under the Influence" and "What's it Feel like to be a Ghost?," while Lazzara's mic-swinging, stage-climbing antics provided for a very entertaining, nostalgic, emotional, and career-defining set from one of the scene's brightest stars.
Overall Grade: A
Mike Leatherwood- After Taking Back Sunday played "You Know How I Do" and "Bike Scene" to start the set, I realized history was about to be made on the Jumbo Stage. Then vocalist Adam Lazzara confirmed my suspicions. Taking Back Sunday announced they would be playing their beloved debut album "Tell All Your Friends" front to back and immediately went into fan favorite "Cute, Without the 'E' (Cut From the Team). As for the performance itself? The guys sounded phenomenal, especially returning members Shaun Cooper and John Nolan. With Adam Lazzara's voice gone, Nolan's backing vocals on songs such as "A Decade Under the Influence" and "MakeDamnSure" helped make up for anything lost (not to mention every fan belting out the words to every single song). In the end, Taking Back Sunday put on a show to remember, and if their new self-titled album (due out June 28) lives up to expectations, the sky is the limit for them.
Overall Grade: A
Tom Taylor - Taking Back Sunday headlined the second day of Bamboozle and did something relatively unheard of at festivals, they played their entire first album "Tell All You Friends" in its entirety. The best part about it was that everyone in the crowd had no idea that was about to happen. I have never heard their first album in full until this show. The crowd was pumped, and Taking Back Sunday rocked the house. Even with the disappearance of Adam Lazzara's voice, the rest of the band picked it up and no one was disappointed. After they finished their album, they played a great selection of songs to finish out their set. Hearing some of the songs from the new album has given me a renewed sense of anticipation for what could be another amazing album from TBS. Do yourself a favor, if you haven't seen TBS yet, you should (perhaps during the TBS/Thursday tour, hmmm?).
Overall Grade: A
SETLIST
1. You Know How I Do
2. Bike Scene
3. Cute Without the "E" (Cut From the Team)
4. There's No "I" in Team
5. Great Romances of the 20th Century
6. Ghost Man on Third
7. Timberwolves at New Jersey
8. The Blue Channel
9. You're So Last Summer
10. Head Club
11. El Paso
12. Liar (It Takes One to Know One)
13. Error: Operator
14. Existentialism on Prom Night (Straylight Run Cover)
15. What's It Feel Like to Be a Ghost
16. A Decade Under the Influence
17. Faith (When I Let You Down)
18. MakeDamnSure
Tom Taylor - Taking Back Sunday headlined the second day of Bamboozle and did something relatively unheard of at festivals, they played their entire first album "Tell All You Friends" in its entirety. The best part about it was that everyone in the crowd had no idea that was about to happen. I have never heard their first album in full until this show. The crowd was pumped, and Taking Back Sunday rocked the house. Even with the disappearance of Adam Lazzara's voice, the rest of the band picked it up and no one was disappointed. After they finished their album, they played a great selection of songs to finish out their set. Hearing some of the songs from the new album has given me a renewed sense of anticipation for what could be another amazing album from TBS. Do yourself a favor, if you haven't seen TBS yet, you should (perhaps during the TBS/Thursday tour, hmmm?).
Overall Grade: A
SETLIST
1. You Know How I Do
2. Bike Scene
3. Cute Without the "E" (Cut From the Team)
4. There's No "I" in Team
5. Great Romances of the 20th Century
6. Ghost Man on Third
7. Timberwolves at New Jersey
8. The Blue Channel
9. You're So Last Summer
10. Head Club
11. El Paso
12. Liar (It Takes One to Know One)
13. Error: Operator
14. Existentialism on Prom Night (Straylight Run Cover)
15. What's It Feel Like to Be a Ghost
16. A Decade Under the Influence
17. Faith (When I Let You Down)
18. MakeDamnSure
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