Sunday, December 4th was 97x Next Big Thing 5 at Coachman Park in Clearwater, Florida. 11 Bands, 11 Hours of music, 11 Hours of standing. It was amazing. Here is a rundown of all the bands and their performances.
Suburban Tragedy - Openers of the show. Local band from Palm Harbor. They provided a lot of energy to start off the show. Talented group of guys, it is the second time I have seen them open up a 97x show. Check out their myspace.
Motion City Soundtrack - Way too early for Motion City to take the stage but none the less, great show. These guys put on one heck of a show. From Justin's crazy hair to Jesse's handstands on the Moog, it is non stop energy. They played both old and new material, including "My Favorite Accident", "Capitol H", and "Everything is Alright". Anyone who has never seen them live I highly recommend that you see them as soon as possible. I have never been dissapointed in the three times I have seen them.
Anberlin - Central Florida's own Anberlin. Energetic is one word that could describe their set. They remind me a lot of Armor for Sleep, and that is not a bad thing. They seemed to have a lot of fun, and had quite the stage presence. The guitarist was swinging his guitar around like their is no tomorrow. There was not as much screaming as to the first time I saw them when they opened for Taking Back Sunday.
Alkaline Trio - I have been looking forward to seeing Alkaline Trio live for quite some time now, and never have I been so disapointed with a live set. The set list was great, but there was nothing going on with them. There was little communication with the crowd, and not too much movement on stage. It could have been a lot better, but yet again it could have been a lot worse (see Dark Light blog concerning Skindred).
Our Lady Peace - If you live in the Tampa Bay area and listen to 97x you know that they do intimate sets in the studio with bands. Well we got to experience a Green Room performance by Canada's own Our Lady Peace. Completely not my kind of music. The set was not motivating, it just kind of put me to sleep. Not really, but it was not very good from my perspective.
30 Seconds To Mars - Jared Leto is crazy. I will admit the only song I had heard of theirs was "Attack", but today, I know a lot more seeing I went out and bought their CD. They surprised me this year as much as Lostprophets did last year. There was not a dull moment in the set. At one point, Leto climbed to the top of the stage, and sang from there. It must have been 40 feet from the stage. I would go see them again if they played tonight. Expect a lot from these guys in the near future, as they will be going on a headlining tour after the first of the year.
Rise Against - there was no band I wanted to see more than Rise Against. I spent more time trying to avoid crowd surfers than anything. I have never seen so many crowd surfers in my life. I got kicked in the head so many times it's not even funny. Amazing set. Old and new songs. The crowd absolutely loved them. When they performed "Swing Life Away", it was just Tim out there with his acoustic guitar. It was quite moving. I love Rise Against and seeing them for the first time madew me realize how much I do enjoy them.
Story of the Year - What can I say about Story of the Year. These 5 have the most energetic live show I have ever seen, and that is why I have seen them four times. During the set, they played a medley of classics including "Sweet Child of Mine", "More Than a Feeling" and finally 50 Cent's "Candy Shop". There is more guitar swinging and back flips than you could ever imagine. The set list was pretty well blended between old and new material.
Trapt - I could not tell you anything Trapt played, or how their set was. It was bathroom/water/food break during their set.
My Chemical Romance - If anyone tells you that My Chem are not good live have no idea what good is. Every performance of theirs is great, and it improves every time you see them. The majority of songs were from "Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge". A lot of energy from these guys. Expect a new CD from them some time next year, and do not expect to see them on tour any time soon.
Staind - Staind was the first band I ever saw, 6 years ago. I forgot how much I enjoy them. Their set list was brilliant. They only played three or four of their slow songs, and everything else was heavy. During the set, Aaron Lewis gave a remembarance to Dimebag Darrell and played his signature guitar. It was moving. They closed out their set with "Mudshovel" which was amazing.
Overall, it was a great day, despite being there from 7:30 am til 9 pm.
