'Who wants to see a punk rock show?' Mike Hererra's question to the crowd at the beginning of the show made me think. It had been way too long since I had seen a punk rock band and that this particular punk rock band, Washington's MXPX, were going make me say yes.
Not only was I to be treated to pop-punk legends, I was also in the company of some interesting up and comers. After falling out of love with this scene long a go it was interesting to see the modern day pop-punk torch bearers. Forgive Burden opened the night with a set of spazzed up punk laced with tribal percussion and enough syncopation to give you a seizure which impressed me. Drive By delivered some solid yet fairly predictable tunes, whilst Hit The Lights made sure the evening stayed entertaining with a set full of energy and irresistible hooks. Houston Calls were the last of the supports, sounding a little like Something Corporate, keyboard and all but failed to grab me. On to the real show.
MXPX were a band I grew up with, and I was always entranced by their energy and melodies. Live, nothing changed. Their set was lengthy, I believe close to an hour and a half, but it was filled to the brim with MXPX classics. Songs like 'My Life Story' and 'Move to Bremerton' whipped the surprisingly small crowd into a frenzy and 'Chick Magnet' was punctuated by members of the crowd jumping on stage for some impromptu karaoke, with Mike obliging. The way this band interacts with the crowd must be commended, possessing what seemed to be a genuine affection for their fans and devoted a large part of their set to crowd requests. One such request, the very old 'PxPx' was probably the most popular, with the band dishing up this track, off their first album, with the zeal of a band who wrote it just yesterday. The set was closed with 'Punk Rock Show', an anthem for any punk rock kid growing up and it made me realise how fun punk music really can be. I was so excited I jumped into my first mosh pit in years as this song began, and it felt so good. This band will be eternally youthful and I guess that is reflected in their music. Youthful, energetic, and at times slightly cheesy. But I didn't care one bit.
MYSPACE: MXPX
MYSPACE: Houston Calls
MYSPACE:Hit The Lights
1 comment:
i dont think anything in this world can beat musical nostalgia!
sounds like a fantastic show from a more than appreciative band!
i must admit a sense of jealously overrides my praise for ur post becoz it doesnt seem like myself and 5ive or the spicegirls will ever get that same chance!
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