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We got there right before The Format started playing. We walked around the arena while Matt was looking for a Jimmy Eat World shirt for his girlfriend's sister. The Jimmy Eat World shirst were $25, so I strongly urged him not to buy it. He settled on getting her a Taking Back Sunday shirt for a much cheaper $20. It really bothers me that the bands who do well feel it necessary to rape their fans with expensive T shirt prices (I know the venues charge a percentage, but it still goes up my ass).
Sarah and I went to our seats as Matt and his cousin found theirs (I didn't think there would be assigned seating and I also thought that people would be allowed on the floor without having to pay more money) as The Format were playing the last few songs from their set. We could hear them fine while we were walking around, and they sounded decent, although they are nothing memorable. The Format seem like a band that will be good, but I can't see them being great.
We had really good seats, towards the side of the stage and relatively close to the front. Jimmy Eat World opened their set with a song off of Clarity (an album I don't have and have no interest in purchasing). They played a good mix of songs from Clarity, Bleed American, and Futures. They were good, but there were times (mostly during the Clarity songs) that I found myself getting bored during their hour long set.
The best part of the night came during Jimmy Eat World's set. One stupid frat fuck yelled out after a song telling Jimmy Eat World that they ruled. His friend acted like he just heard the greatest thing ever and gave him a good old frat styled high five. I was reminded of the scene from Dirty Work when some frat boys get back to their house and high five each other after beating the crap out of Norm McDonald and Artie Lange's characters. It was so funny well worth the money I payed for the concert.
The crowd went fucking nuts when Taking Back Sunday took the stage. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of girls lost their voice during Taking Back Sunday's hour long set. They played most of the songs off of both Tell All Your Friends and Where You Want to Be, as well as two new ones. One followed the Taking Back Sunday song writing formula and was a bit boring. The other song, "Error Operator," was so good that I will buy their new album for that song alone. It was a bit faster (keep up with that-FAST=GOOD) and more agressive, and it could be the best song they've ever written.
The song they didn't play that I wanted to hear was "There's No 'I' in Team." In the second verse, it sounds like they admit that they make love to plants, and I was dying to hear if that would sound the same live. They also played "A Decade Under the Influence," which I didn't want to hear at all because that song drives me nuts and I can't stand it.
Their stage presence was really good, with the exception of Adam Lazzara prancing around the stage like a gay ballerina. There were times when I couldn't even watch him because he was creeping me out. I'm also a big fan of how short their bassist, Matt Rubano, was. It was cool to see that his bass was almost as tall as him. Fred Mascherino's voice live is much better than the man he replaced, which adds a lot to their live show. Drummer Mark O’Connell is really fucking good at drums.
This was a decent show, although the whole arena thing really bothered me. The Dunk (as it is called in Rhode Island) is much better suited for undersold hockey games instead of concerts.
Written by: RF