Wow its been a long time since I've written anything new here. I mean, I'm saying that as if anyone were actually reading this, obviously. But since this is more for me than anyone else, I guess its still applicable. There have been so many times where I wish I had written something here, but better late than never, I guess. So there have been a few shows I've been to since I last wrote anything, but arguably (very arguably) the most important was the Get Up Kids reunion show at the Gramercy Theater in Manhattan.Obviously the main draw of the show for me was the chance to see a band that I love but had never had the opportunity to see live before. I've been a fan of the Get Up Kids since just after they broke up in 2005 (one of the first things I ever knew about them was that they had just broken up); and albums like Four Minute Mile and Something To Write Home About have both enjoyed borderline obsession on my part. So obviously I was pretty stoked to see them- but not as stoked as I would be... (that's called foreshadowing, kids).
One unusual thing about this show was that the opening band was not announced. Rather, most sources listed the obviously fake Matzoh's Balls as the opener. Being ever cynical, I expected the opener to be decent, but not very exciting. Reggie and the Full Effect, the one man band featuring Get Up Kids keyboardist James Dewees, seemed like the most likely candidate. With this in mind, I was rather delightfully surprised when I overheard a conversation in the venue that included the line, "Most people don't know that Brand New is opening tonight." Or something like that. It was kind of a while ago. Anyway, Brand New did indeed open that night, much to the stunned surprise of most people at the show. I was not expecting to see two bands that I really wanted to see in the same night. They played a couple hits from Deja Entendu, but mostly stuck to stuff from their newest album, The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me. However, at the vehement request of the crowd, they reluctantly ended with the classic Seventy Times Seven. I'm not gonna lie, it got kind of wild.
The Get Up Kids played a rather predictable set, which is kind of exactly what I would want out of a reunion show. While they did not play my personal favorite song, Close To Home from Something To Write Home About, they played a robust and respectable amount of their most famous songs. A little heavy on the Guilt Show without enough Four Minute Mile songs, but definitely worthwhile nonetheless. And on a side note, there's nothing more annoying at a show than people yelling the name of a band's most famous song, as if they weren't going to play it anyway. This was the case with "I'm A Loner Dottie, A Rebel," my other favorite song of theirs, and one of the only they were guaranteed to play. Anyway, I don't remember much else significant during the show. I saw it in early May, and it is now September, which is why I should have written this earlier. I do remember them seeming a little old and tired, but I don't think I was expecting anything different, and it was still a great show.
So that's kinda all I can remember. Not really, but all I care to write down right now. But I'm going to a couple really great shows in the near future, so I'll update then. In about a month, I'm going to see Sunny Day Real Estate with The Jealous Sound, and I truly believe it has the potential to be one of the greatest shows I've ever seen. I love both of those bands, and I'm super excited. Anyway, its nice to be writing here again, even though there's a good chance only one other person besides me will read it (hi, by the way).
