| SAOSIN and BLESSTHEFALL - live in Auckland! |
| Written by Sarah Mudgway |
| Thursday, 24 June 2010 11:45 |
 SAOSIN and BLESSTHEFALL share an eerily similar story. Both bands have had well-documented vocalist changes, which still plague them. Both have released only two full-length albums, both have five members, both have played both the Taste Of Chaos (U.S.) and Warped Tour music festivals - and now in recent history - both played to a packed-to capacity Ellen Melville Hall on June 9th 2010. Local acts Broken Avenue and Snakes Of Iron opened the show, and by the time Blessthefall took to the stage, the anticipation was at an all-time high, as was the heat. Take any room with little to no ventilation and pack it to capacity... and a sweat-fest is guaranteed to ensue. That being said, any complaints about the heat were silenced when an enthusiastic Blessthefall arrived on stage, opening their frenzied set with ‘2.0’ and ‘What’s Left Of Me’ - the two opening tracks from their latest release ‘Witness'.  Sound issues took away from the frenzied energy on stage - vocalist Beau Bokan’s clean vocals at times were lost behind the loud instrumentals - however, after much button pressing by the sound guy, the mix was considerably better for the remainder of the set, including tracks such as ‘To Hell And Back’ and ‘God Wears Gucci'. Bokan's vocals were at times a little iffy, however any imperfections were 100% made up for with his enthusiasm and crowd interactions. Matt Traynor - Blessthefalls’ drummer - was especially solid, and Bokan spent almost as much time in/on the crowd as he did on stage, which was appreciated by his many adoring fans. Ending their set with ‘Rise Up’, ‘Skin Walkers’ and ‘Witness’, the young band showed a lot of promise - and the exhausted audience scrambling for the exit to get some much needed fresh air, emphasised the fact that Blessthefall killed it.  Saosin haven’t graced NZ shores since their appearance at the Taste Of Chaos music festival, back in October 2006. Four years of label changes, numerous tours, and a much anticipated album release later - the cheers which met the five-piece as they crowded onto the Melville stage, suggested that it’s been about four years too long since their last visit. Opening with ‘I Keep My Secrets Safe’ - the opening track from their 2009 release ‘In Search Of Solid Ground’ -the band's experience in touring almost non-stop over the past few years has definitely paid off, with each member clearly appearing at ease and feeling at home on the stage with their respective instrument. Vocalist Cove Reber has often been attacked by many a Youtube critic for his at times strained vocals, however, while there were a few moments of weakness, overall Reber held his ground and proved himself. Moving straight onto ‘Sleepers’, the performance showcased the guitar skills of both Justin and Chris, while bassist Beau harmonized with Reber in all the right places. Crowd sing-a-longs to ‘Voices’ led Reber to state he “literally had chills”, before the band launched into their latest single - the perfect for pogo-ing ‘Changes’ - which had what felt like the entirety of attendees up on their feet. Thanking the audience for their attendance, and patience during the four year wait (and promising it won’t take that long before they visit again), Saosin continued on their to-and-fro’ing between old and new, blasting their way through ‘Collapse’ before ‘Deep Down’, which was followed by impressive drumming courtesy of Alex on ‘It’s Far Better To Learn'.  It was around this time, that Cove Reber started entertaining and almost baffling some kids in attendance with talk of his now infamous dreads - offering up a discount on merch for anyone who would “cut off one of [his] dreads and smoke it” - before continuing on in his own little train of wonder, questioning the likelihood of someone gaining his magical powers if they did in fact smoke a dread of his. Despite numerous half-hearted offers from anonymous concert-goers hidden in the shadows, no-one took Cove up on his offer, so I suppose we shall never know. While the band seemed as comfortable on-stage playing recent tracks such as ‘On My Own’ as they did for their older tracks, the level of sing-a-longs and crowd enthusiasm was clearly greater for their older material. While a few ambitious boys near me attempted a circle pit during ‘Bury Me’, it seemed the majority of those in attendance were a lot more alive for ‘You’re Not Alone’ - Saosin's uplifting and positive ballad which inspired a mass sing-a-long - with a particularly touching moment when Reber and crew led the crowd in a "woah-oh-oh" sing-a-long, which was hilariously ruined by two young fans who managed their way on stage, only to sing the wrong part into the microphone. Note to future stage-crashers - please please please know the right lyrics and part of the song BEFORE you decide to crash the stage and take control of a microphone, unless you don’t mind being laughed at. Rounding off their set with their seven minute long masterpiece ‘Fireflies’, followed by crowd favourite ‘Seven Years’, Reber informed the audience that there would be no encore and their final song would be their last. Ending with ‘They Perch On Their Stilts Pointing And Daring Me To Break Custom’, the smiles on the band's faces as well as Reber’s constant “I love you guys” statements, showcased a band who truly did seem appreciative of the positive response from the audience. Let’s just hope they make the trip over here a little quicker than four years next time, so we can re-live it all over again.  |
