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| This was truly a solid line-up |
Ben Buchnat
The show being advertised as the "Pop Punk Party!" got off to a quiet start with Ben Buchnat on acoustic guitar. Ben is actually good friends with Bet the Levels guitarist Brendyn Wirtz who later joined in on a couple of songs. Ben sounded pretty good for most of the set and seemed calm and collected for one of his first (if not, his first) show. All of the songs were acoustic covers including "Dammit" by blink-182 (shocking). This acoustic version of "Dammit" actually sounded very stripped down since only individual notes were played for the intro. I would have played chords instead, if I were him, but other than that he sounded very good.
Just This Once
Just this Once was the one exception to this set being good. They sounded terrible from the first downbeat to the last note. The guitar player and bass player were solid most of the time but the singer and drummer were horrendous. Now, granted, I did have a bad first impression with these guys since they were playing a Fall Out Boy cover when I walked in ("Dance Dance" for those of you that really need to know). But from a technical standpoint, it just wasn't good. The singer was flat most of the time. This was especially apparent when they decided to attempt a cover of "Over My Head" by Sum 41. The singer was very energetic and passionate but definitely needed some more practice. The drummer would frequently blunder drum fills and, occasionally, speed-up at an unbelievable rate. I usually don't recommend that a drummer should play with a metronome during a concert but he really needed it. Needless to say, it was a very bumpy ride. However, it was never bad enough where they had to stop in the middle of a song.
The band ended with a cover of "Jesus of Suburbia" by Green Day which not only caused them to run over their scheduled end-time but was also the worst song they had played. At this point, even the guitar player and bass player were messing up. Clearly, they did not have the song down. The poor aspects of the drumming were also amplified. I was truly amazed that they were able to finish the song.
Where Shadows Lie
Where Shadows Lie was a bit of a change of pace from what I've normally seen at Pub Yahoo. Although their sound was very pop influenced, the basis of their band was metalcore. The timing of this is interesting considering that I just posted about metalcore not too long ago. They did a Devil Wears Prada cover which, quite frankly, I thought sounded better than when I saw The Devil Wears Prada at Riot Fest. They were very energetic and the music was good. I"m not sure how many of their songs were covers or how many were originals since I'm not very familiar with metalcore but whatever they played, it sounded really good. It got the crowd going enough where there was an actual mosh pit started. There were probably a good six or seven people moshing which, for as packed as Pub Yahoo was, it managed to worke with only that many people.
Jaded State
Jaded State was probably my favorite band there other than Bet the Levels. The band does almost exclusively Green Day covers. The band's front man even had a pretty decent Billie Joe Armstrong impersonation going. He had the tie, shirt, and hair for it and had a good Billie Joe voice too. I remembered him from when I had first walked in because he complimented me on my MCR Bullets shirt. I don't know what it is but almost every time I wear that shirt I get a compliment from someone (usually a complete stranger).
They played a couple of songs from American Idiot, "East Jesus Nowhere" from 21st Century Breakdown, and a few others. The album that they covered from the most though was Dookie. They played "Welcome to Paradise," "Basket Case," and "When I Come Around." Their cover of "Blitzkrieg Bop" by The Ramones, though easy to play, was spot on. They played a couple of originals which, I must say, were pretty notable. I actually got a chance to talk to the singer after the show and I suggested they play more originals since they were really good. He said that they had a bunch they could play but they felt like doing Green Day covers that day. So, that was that, I suppose...
If you get a chance to see Jaded State, especially if they are playing with another band you want to see, it's really an opportunity you don't want to miss. They're a fun show and I hope to see them again in the near future.
Bet the Levels
Although they were originally scheduled for the headliner slot, Bet the Levels switched with Right on Red due to some scheduling conflict. So, Bet the Levels ended up coming on in the penultimate slot. It was pretty evident that Bet the Levels was the band people stuck around for that night too since not very many people stuck around for Right on Red.
But anyways, what is there to say about Bet the Levels that I haven't said already? For that reason, I'm not going to review their show. I refuse to do it. No more Bet the Levels reviews! I'm going on strike! This person in-charge (who is me) keeps expecting me to write about Bet the Levels. Well, I won't do it anymore! I'm tired of this shit! Having to constantly go to Pub Yahoo to review Bet the Levels is ridiculous! I just can't handle these working conditions!
Okay, in all seriousness, the reason why I'm not going to review Bet the Levels this time is because I played with them. I didn't just play one song either. I filled in on bass guitar for the whole set. So, it really doesn't make sense for me to review a concert that I was playing in.
However, I can talk about my experience playing with Bet the Levels. Basically, it was a ton of fun. The mosh pit got going enough to the point where the bouncer of the bar had to keep breaking it up due to how big and out of control it was getting. It was an awesome time. We played originals from their album Don't Punch the Driver and covered Nirvana's "Heart-shaped Box," (to honor the anniversary of Kurt Cobain's death) and "Weinerschnitzel" by The Descendants. It was also particularly interesting when this drunk old man kind of came out of nowhere. When I say he was drunk, he was really damn drunk. He was trying to go to the bathroom (which is located stage-left) and, while trying to get there, he tripped over the PA stand and face-planted into the ground. This happened right in the middle of a song as well which was comical because the lead singer, Dan, stopped singing and looked over, then looked at me with a very puzzled look on his face, and then kept singing. When the song finally finished, we waited until the bouncer and some other guy could help him up. This took at least a full minute and he still had trouble standing up on his own. I heard that later that night, he tried driving home and the bouncer had to snag his keys away from him.
All in all, it was a fun show. I'm really glad that I got to play with them.
Right on Red
Right on Red took the stage as the last band. There really isn't a whole lot to say except that they were technically solid. However, I found their set a bit dry. The music was generally uninteresting and I found that this set felt longer than the others (except for Just this Once, that one couldn't have ended soon enough!). I think that on any other night, Right on Red would have been just fine but the energy of Where Shadows Lie, Jaded State, and Bet the Levels blew them right out of the place. I also think that for my personal preference, they were a bit too pop which could explain why I wasn't enjoying this set as much. The singing was solid, the guitars were solid, the bass was solid, and the drums were solid. They weren't spectacular but they were fine. If you're more into pop, they're probably worth checking out. However, I think that they were more-or-less run of the mill and that there wasn't anything particularly unique about them. It seemed that the audience was also generally uninterested as the crowd shrunk down to about only ten people from the overwhelming number that Bet the Levels had. They may be a band worth checking out every now and then to see what they blossom into in the future. But really, only time will tell.
Well, that was the Pop Punk Party! at Pub Yahoo. If you weren't there, you missed a pretty stellar show. The bands were good, the audience was good, it was the most fun I've had at a Bet the Levels show yet! Granted, I did play the set with them but I have a hunch that even if I were an audience member, it would have still been a hell of a time.
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