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Silverstein, Spitalfield, Stretch Armstrong, The Sleeping
Axis in Boston, MA
February 26, 2006
One wrong turn caused us to arrive at the show pretty damn late. Leaving 20 minutes before doors didn't help much either, but the wrong turn really was an ass kicker. I knew right away that I had made a mistake, but it was too late. Luckily, Matt spotted the big Citgo sign (Axis is right across the street from Fenway Park), which we used to guide us to the club, although we spent a good ten minutes parallel to sign, separated by a river. I now know how the three Wise Men felt on Christmas Day, except not at all.
Because of our tardiness, we flat out missed The Sleeping. We showed up just as Stretch Armstrong were taking the stage. I always thought that they played metalcore, but they sounded like a poppier version of Sick of it All or H2O. Their singer reminded me a lot of Lou Koeller, and the singing voices (a guitarist sang as well) were quite good.
Stretch Armstrong had a lot of energy and were sending positive vibes throughout the club, which made for a great and entertaining set. If I had more than $15 in my pocket, I would have bought their album, but that will have to go down another day.
I really like Spitalfield, and feel that they are one of the most underrated bands out there in the indie pop music scene today. Their music is friendly and extremely catchy, always a good listen. Their set showed a very raw side to the band that I hadn't noticed during previous sets of theirs. They were really good and incredibly tight. Their singer told a couple bad and unfunny jokes, but the songs they played more than made up for that bit of anti humor.
Despite the muddy sound (which eventually was resolved), Silverstein had the crowd riding their jocks the entire set. There were constant mosh pits and/or crowd movement to the music and hand clapping galore; not to mention the people singing along with every word. Their stage presence leaned slightly towards the boring side, but the music had mroe than enough energy to make up for it. The crowd cheered excitedly at the start of every song, and Silverstein rewarded them with a killer 45 minutes of music.
This was a very enjoyable show that was much better than I had anticipated. It put a positive start to my whole week, giving me a good amount of excitement and energy (which I'll need for working with kids) that I'm hoping will stay with me the whole time.
Written by: RF