In the last couple of months you have read reviews I have written about Marry a Thief and This Machine is Me so I decided to give someone else a shot at it. I introduce to you Shelby Sachs. Shelby writes for The Daily Gamecock and is involved in Carolina Productions along with other activities at USC. She had this show preview published last week so it is only fitting that someone let her review the show. So here it is.
Shelby Sachs
So this past Friday, This Machine Is Me had a concert for their EP “Make Your Move,” and it was quite the success. It rained the entire day, and it was making me nervous for how it would affect the attendance at the show. Luckily it stopped raining a few hours before the concert, and over 200 people came out: to me, that makes all of the promotion they did periodically throughout the past month well worth it!
Pharon Pitman opened up the night with her first (and hopefully not last) performance at Headliners. She recently won New Brookland Tavern and the Jam Room’s Acoustic Competition, so you know that she is not shy when it comes to performing on stage. With her powerful and melodic songs and undeniable presence, expect to see big things from her in the future!
Next was Say Vandelay, who recently got signed to Wisteria Records, and who put on a high-energy and full-throttle performance. This band, and especially its lead singer Luke, got so intense on stage, that I was actually worried at one point because he started shaking and got red in the face. I talked to him after the performance, however, and I was relieved when he told me that he was alright; this band puts everything they have into each performance which is never a bad thing.
A band that is no stranger to Columbia, Marry a Thief, put on another successful performance. With a large and dedicated fan base behind them, the crowd sung along with lead singer Erich Skelton. Friday’s show was quite enjoyable because unlike their Music Crawl performance, it felt more intimate. Throughout the performance Erich was drinking with “X’s” on his hands, and I was with people that were unfamiliar with Erich on a personal level, and they did not know how old he was. It was quite funny, however, and after the show I talked to Erich and he told me that he forgot his ID, and the bouncers at Headliners did not believe him that he was over 21…go figure!
Finally, it was This Machine Is Me’s moment in the spotlight and the time that the audience had been waiting for. From the second that This Machine Is Me stepped on stage, you could tell that this was going to be a great performance, and full of energy and tons of dancing. They played every one of their songs, and even introduced us to their brand new song, “Choke.” Although I have seen This Machine Is Me quite a lot, and enjoyed their winning acoustic performance at Acoustic Café’s Acoustic Competition, I saw an energy and stage presence that I have not seen from them in a while. I think that this band was thankful, relieved and excited that not only did so many people come out, but that their marketing techniques paid off, and with me taking part in their endeavors, I am glad it did!
