Say Anything/The Front Bottoms/So So Glos/You Blew It! play Amos Southend in Charlotte, NC June 21, 2014.
The last time I saw three of the bands on this bill I was in Austin, Texas for SXSW. For Say Anything that show was in 2012, and for the So So Glos and Front Bottoms that was in March of this year. Those SXSW shows came just a week after The Front Bottoms and the So So Glos played a sold out show at New Brookland Tavern in Columbia, SC. A show that saw lead singer Brian Sella both invite everyone on stage near the end of the show, then kick everyone off stage so he could leap onto the hands of the crowd and surf around. It was a spectical and an incredible show, making me wonder if all their shows were that wild or if we saw something really special that night.
Each time The Front Bottoms have hit Columbia, SC the crowd has at least doubled for them. We hosted their first show in town at El Burrito in 2011 where we had about 40 paying guests. Of those, I’d say they drew about 15 people. Next time they came to town with Bad Books and completely stole the show and seemingly had more fans than the headliner and if they didn’t they surely had the more vocal fans. When they visited again in March they were deservedly headliners and obviously the band that everyone was there to see.
The Front Bottoms have always been a hard band to pin down, and most comparisons led back to the smirky wordplay of Say Anything. Say Anything has maintained a cult following over the years, but is nowhere near where they were at the height of their popularity. On their new album Hebrews, released June 10, Say Anything front-man Max Bemis collaborates with a long list of his emo cohorts including Jon Simmons (Balance and Composure), Andy Hull (Manchester Orchestra),Chris Conley, Matt Pryor, Campesinos, Aaron Weiss, his wife Sherry Dupree Bemis, Tom Delonge, and Stacy King (Eisley). On the new album Bemis sharp tongue has dulled only slightly as the album leans more theatrical than past releases. It’s also devoid of guitar, although I’m not sure what plays the solo in “Six Six Six.” It sounds like a guitar, but maybe it was a synth made to sound like a guitar. No guitars is a silly gimmick anyway. Insert whatever instrument the song calls for.
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