Bayonet and Shoots

haha...see what I did there with the title?

anyways...I have some pictures to post from two shoots I got images of and Oh. My. Goodness. They are all amazing. The one set, I'm going to do a post tomorrow with those images, but for now - let's talk about my first music experience of the new year and I'll leave you with one sneak peek at another shoot we did last week.

So tonight, I stuck around to see the set from BAYONET on the NJ stop of SET YOUR GOALS' tour. Who are they? Basically the singer of SENSES FAIL, people from the now disfunct THE BANNER and other dudes.

Let's remind the reader of my love and slight obsession with SENSES FAIL and their singer.

That said, I had to stick around and see what was to come of this, as the songs on their myspace didn't grab me - http://www.myspace.com/bayonetdoesntcare

So! I must say, it's basically SENSES FAIL wihtout the little 'metal shredding' flourishes and Buddy whining about this and that - well at least it's not clear in the vocals.

I liked it. Few moments of catchier melodies, back then to some 'harder' drums and such and non-nasally vocals, which you got to love.

Check it out if you haven't. I'm excited for what's to come as I've kinda given up that any new material from Senses Fail will live up to what I remember of them.

(After I went home b/c snow sucks and I wasn't going to drive in what's accumulating outside)

That said, here's a shot from the Creepshow shoot we did last week. Rock and Roll!

Bamboozle: DAY ONE

Where to start?

Well we almost didn't get in - but the lady at the ticket booth got eevrything worked out and I got 'listed.' haha, whatever

Let's see...Heard "Shake It" by Metro Station - Danny Devito and a deformed Cyrus, fun times.

Turned to the left and started to watch Bloodhound Gang. We left after the first song. Why? The sound people had the vocals down and you couldn't hear him and we really didn't feel like sticking around the whole time just to hear that animals song.

Caught a bit of Artist vs. Poet - cute and fun music.

Then looked for band merch. Ok, WTF is this? They basically hearded all the artists for the respective stages into ONE tent, with a few exceptions. I can see how it was a somewhat 'ok, maybe this is cool,' BUT no. No no no

ALL the other tents at the place were fucking tshirt designers. NOW I can't hate on all of them, but seriously, shouldn't this be about the music? Whatever, can't knock the hustle, but I wasn't thrilled about it.

OK!

We get back to the music - waiting for Dance Gavin Dance, we get to see Young Love. Fun dance music. He's dorky on stage, but charming. Like it.

Dance Gavin starts with the first track off the new album (remember, I don't do song titles well) and it's GREAT. Then they start doing those songs I know, but am not uber familiar with. The idiot kids open the pit up and it gets annoying. They do Track 7 from the new album and end with "Rock Solid." So not too impressed, but a decent set.

Turned out two of the most enjoyable sets were Kid Cudi and Asher Roth. Kid Cudi is like what hip hop needs and Asher is just a white boy who is going to be pegged forever as a college/stoner rapper. Both were great.

Ok, BEST SET of THE WEEK - THE HORRORPOPS!
I saw them off to the side before the tech guys set everything up and it seemed like they were a little disgruntled. But they came out and just killed it. Perfect perfect. Music on point, vocals sounded great and they were smiling and Patricia is the one of the best front women ever.

"Freaks in Uniforms," "Where They Wander," "Walk like a Zombie," and a few other ones filled the set and we danced the whole time. They even went to do a signing after the set and being dorks, felt weird going over, but in buying the cd gave a thumbs up on the set as they walked away.

We went over to see Gwar and they were crazy. And the music is pretty darn good. haha. We only stuck around for three songs and yea, they're definately the show stoppers.

Fun times. Day two later...

Show Review : The Birthday Massacre

Highline Ballroom
New York, NY
April 27, 2009

I LOVE The Birthday Massacre. I've only seen them three times now and each time, I'm just in love.

That sweet, music box melody that plays throughout their songs puts the biggest smile on my face and it's safe to say their show got me out of the horrid mood I've been in since early Saturday afternoon.

I also caught I Am Ghost's set. They're good and I definately will listen to them when I think of it. They were like a toned down, polished & intricate Aiden. Plus the bassist was hot from where I was standing.



Check them out.

TBM started with my favorite, "Red Stars" and ended with "Happy Birthday."

Honestly, they filled the insanely quick, but a good hour and 15-ish minutes set with songs from all across the board.

Chibi got her hair cut since last I saw them and she looks awesome! Such a cute cut.

They're also such a great live band because the interaction between all of the members on stage is as fun to watch as it is moving along with their music. Chibi makes the cutest/funniest faces to her band mates and the audience. She's twisted like the chick from the craft (and The Waterboy...what's her name? she's a rad actress too), but she's child-like and sweet.

Then, they're just another band who's music is better live than in the recording - yea, there's not a lot out there.

Just love them! Wish I had gone on Saturday too, but that's what makes it that much sweeter - don't overdose!

Alesana - Show Review

March 6th, Blender Theater
New York, NY

Move over Chiodos (I'll get back to you over Warped), but for now, my new guilty obsession is Alesana.

They're on an insanely long tour and I want another fix after seeing them at the Blender Theater. Especially since their set seemed to have been cut short b/c the venue people didn't think enough to start earlier in order to accomodate five bands.

We started with I Set My Friends on Fire, which it turns out there's really only two of them - but a drummer travels along for the tour. I sort of developed a headache, but was enjoying myself surprisingly. The singer's ranting and screaming was drving me mad...but there was something catchy about it.

They had a bunch of technical problems and the audience were quite mean to them, but they continued on - good for them!

Fear Before (the march of flames) took the stage and had four fake trees along with them. They've difinately become way more quirky and 'interesting' than last I saw them 4 years ago.

The music has become something involving more ambient/progressive elements and it was quite a treat to listen to. Also to weird you out, was someone dressed as a gorilla/ape walking around the stage. Something else impressive - their singer manged to get almost half the mic in his mouth.

Vocally, I wasn't impressed. But the whole package is pretty entertaining and it's a shame they don't tour around here more often.

I hate to be mean, but Drop Dead Gorgeous was horrible. It's just the same blah blah hardcore screaming and heavy guitars that's just - shut up and bring on the other bands. The crowd really liked them, but it gave me time to nap and clear out my text message inbox.

Alesana is just that band that you're afraid to admit you like, but you have every album on your ipod and totally can sing every word to when the girly sounding one (and girly looking one) sings.

They all herded up on stage and began to play. Lead singer/screaming ranted and raved all over the stage and then their girly singer started doing the most amazing moves. He stops playing, grabs the mic with one hand, then with the other - does the emo Mariah Carey hand flutters. Oh! I LOVES IT!

Their set raced by and everything sounded great. The music is insanely catchy, though on the hard side at times. I love "Seduction" and freaked out along with the rest of the crowd when "Congratulations, I Hate You" started.

They came back for the encore, but then I'm pretty sure they were ushered off stage and apologized (haha, encore was "Apology") for having to go and then the lights went on. Sucked.

But an enjoyable show overall - loved it

Homeless for the Holidays with The Bouncing Souls

Holy cow, you don't need to know a damn song by The Bouncing Souls to enjoy a show of theirs. Not that you shouldn't know their catalog, but I'm just saying.

My friend and I went to the first date of their holidays shows b/c of the openers. The Casualties were going to be there. But....as we got closer to the door, there was a sign saying they would not be playing. Turns out one of them is in the hospital - how horrible! Such a bummer, but everyone's thoughts are with them.

So, we arrived just as LES Stitches were starting their set. Really good. They just have that traditional punk rock n' roll sound and are definately worth checking out for a good time if they're playing your area.

Spansih Bombs filled The Casualties' spot and I guess it was a good choice if you wanted a harder sound. They set felt so short compared to LES Stitches and I think it was a good 15 mins shorter. Most of the crowd was lost on them and I couldn't get into them either.

But it wasn't long before The Souls took the stage, all adorned in their red snowflake sweaters that they're wearing in their myspace default picture. They started with "Here We Go," one of the five songs that I know.

Already we were in business. Everyone around me were having a blast, singing along and dancing whether in the pit or with each other.

They played "Lean on Sheena" towards the end and I couldn't be happier. Call me a dork, but I have my stereotypical favorites.

It was a fun night and I'm sure many of those there were coming back for the remaining two days - the last having Gaslight Anthem open for them.

It was also kind of weird. Asbury Park is undergoing renovation and it's retarded. There's shops opening and things are getting cleaned up and while many would say - isn't that a good thing? - it takes away from everything down there.

Inside the Convention Hall, where they played, they opened these small stupid gift shops and a concession stand and pub. Just last year it was gritty and falling apart and awesome. But it added to the Christmas cheesiness of it all, with the huge tree off to the side.

Next year - 20 years of being together for The Bouncing Souls and they're releasing a new track every month to celebrate. They played new of them at the show and trust me, it'll be like Christmas every month.

Big Giant and The Extravaganza

Big Giant and The Extravaganza
Crocodile Rock
Allentown, PA
October 25, 2008

Originally, the draw of seeing The Casualties and From First to Last play on the same stage on the same day was too much for me to stay in Jersey, wondering what exactly was going on at The Croc.

Turned out that FFTL had to cancel, but we still feared the rain and headed over as my sister enjoys Jet Lag Gemini & Just Surrender.

It was an all day thing, with some really great bands and even if you went not familiar with any of them, there was always someone playing who was interesting. Advertised were 4 stages, but there were 3, maybe due to the weather. I felt bad for the downstairs stage as it seemed out of the way and I only passed it to leave the venue or head to the bathrooms. Upstairs was the main stage and right outside the doors was the outdoor mini performance area.

To start, Throw Money was on the Main Stage. They were a fun rock band that held my attention. Double Entendre was next and they are really something. Great vocals and you could just feel this band is heading somewhere, so check them out.

Kelsey and the Chaos strated setting up and my sister said they were like Paramore. Maybe b/c it's a girl-fronted band, but the music is a tad heavier and she pushes her vocals a bit to have more growl and bite.

Halfway through - The power went out for almost an hour. It was kind of cool though.

Their set got cut short and the lead singer entertained the crowd by starting sing-a-longs. The next handful of sets had to have songs shaved off to catch up on time.

So, Jet Lag Gemini was the first band back after the outage and this was my first time seeing them. Jersey love for this band. Great rock music, with an entertaining lead singer, but tough talented, the moments of shredding by their guitarist seemed cheesy. Still awesome though.

There were a few bands here and there, but the two to take note of - Nobody Yet and Motionless in White.

Nobody Yet comes across as a suburban band who nods towards classic punk bands like Buzzcocks, but remain relevant in today's rock scene. I was happy we stepped outside to check them out.

Motionless in White was the highlight of the day as any meoldic screamo-faux metalcore bands today crack me up. The lead singer was a tall Davey Havok, the other members were styled just right and the keyboardist rocked out as much as a keyboard player can. It was great. But hey, the music wasn't all that bad either.

Punchline was up and I was hoping to hear some old favorites. They basically stuck to songs from their new album and being that I haven't heard it yet, I must pick it up. They're still the same poppy, upbeat rock band and the new stuff sounds even better than what I remember.

So we headed out and went to Friendly's. This was probably the greatest thing about the day - They left you LEAVE AND COME BACK. Unlike Warped or Bamboozle, you could park for free and leave to eat somewhere nice.

We returned to see Just Surrender and The Casualties - yea, odd huh?

Never listened to Just Surrender till this show. They had a hype man, who either worked at the venue or was tour manager/roadie or band person, who knows, but he was so excited about them. They were really good and I completely got into their music and danced along. They're on tour with The Higher and two of their members came on stage to sing along.

Ok, now I'm not a real 'punk' kid or know their entire catalog, but The Casualties are a band I'll never pass up seeing. We hung out in the back and watched the punk kids make a circle pit and dance around. Unlike the other pits of the day, the kids here picked each other up and looked out for one another.

The one band member had to open the show by explaining who they are and how they're different from every other band of the day. It was all true, but all the kids on the floor were there for them and not waiting for the last band, Mae.

We left halfway through, as their songs runs right into each other and the noise was bothering the ears (did I mention I'm going deaf?).

All in all, the festival was good. Mainly younger kids, so I felt old. It was just weird b/c it felt like half the people of the already tiny crowd, were band members. It was cool. Wonder what's in store for next year.

SO STOKED!

Tour I need to go to -

Alesana, Motionless in White, Greeley Estates & A Static Lullaby

faux-metalcore, screamo, eyeliner and dyed hair with corny as hell tattoos!

I'm there with pvc on, red lipstick and tons of black eye shadow.