Another night of hardcore at the vfw in the middle of nowhere, aka Upton. Punks from all over Mass made the drive whether it be close or far, as well as two CT bands and One Step Closer from Wilkes-Barre PA. This review will be written differently due to the fact that I have trouble with reviewing hardcore bands individually (and on top of that 6 bands played), so this will be a review of the entire show.
The Upton VFW may be a little out of the way for those coming from Boston and the south shore, but that won't stop them from seeing their friends and supporting the bands. Luckily it wasn't far from me ever since I moved closer to the area. I'm sure Anxious, Kidnapped, and One Step Closer were more than happy to make the drive after the performance they all put on.
Anxious are a band from what they called "a tiny town in Connecticut". My first reaction: these kids are young. Gotta say I dig the logo, the name, and of course the youth, but I was very curious to hear what they had to offer. To my surprise they had a very Title Fight sound. You could see the confidence and effort these kids have and it was astounding, and the the only lights in the room coming from behind them was a very appropriate visual. I can't get over the old school 2005 breakdown that was randomly played in the last song, really brought me back. Gold star for these guys, and bonus points for the drummer's bucket hat.
All throughout the night I was hearing about Kidnapped, all good things. Discussing them with my buddy Cam, he told me I would like them, even though I can be very skeptical about the genre. To my surprise they were a 3 piece and the moment they began, it was a sonic force of powerful earaching destruction. Connecticut was really showing off at this show. Screeching guitars, drums faster than your heart rate, and rash vocals all played at violent speeds, with slow parts that got kids moving. I can't help but think about Wound Man while these guys played. Cam also brought up to me that the drummer uses marching sticks (very impressive). Can't wait for Kidnapped to come back around.
Kind Crew are the next big thing for Massachusetts hardcore just you wait. You could tell they were a highly anticipated act for the night. Kind Crew began with vocalist Fernando stating its been hard week for him after experiencing two deaths, a coworker and his grandfather, and dedicated the set to both of them. the first song made the crowd erupt into motion. after the first song one the the amps stopped working and while solving the problem Fernando gave a shout out to the other bands. Each song they played followed suit with plenty of mic rushing and moshing with smiles on everyone's face, and Kind Crew even delivered a cover of Stop and Think. I'll say it again, these guys are the next big thing for Boston hardcore and definitely proved it at this show.
This show was my first time hearing of One Step Closer and I wasn't sure what to expect. The sound reminded me of three bands: Have Heart, Praise, and Ten Yard Fight. Definitely unique compared to the average hardcore punk band. OSC stated this was the first Massachusetts show they played and never even been here before. Needless to say I'm sure we made them feel welcome. Gotta say this show made me appreciate these out of state bands more, these guys along with Kidnapped and Anxious all seemed to have young ass kids making some incredible music and bring variety to the world of hardcore and I love it.
I've done reviews of both Vantage Point and Pummel before already. Both bands are great and I will never get tired of seeing them, but I may keep it brief for this one, my apologies to both bands but it really is hard for me to write reviews of hardcore bands more than once without being repetitive. I think the last review of Pummel I said they were some what crossover sounding but this time I think they were more hardcore punk, but still with an Age of Quarrel style sound. Definitely more on the hardcore side. Pummel delivered the same reaction as usual with tons of energy from the crowd and just as much from the and as well.
Vantage Point I honestly just can never get enough of. I love seeing these guys and the amount of passion put into the performance. The crowd shows plenty of energy and Russel's pacing back and forth and screaming to the point of exhaustion just shows how much he cares about the act. Alongside Kind Crew, Vantage Point are becoming a staple in Boston hardcore and I could compare the sound to bands like In My Eyes.
