Balance and Composure

Doylestown five-piece Balance and Composure began with “Show Your Face”, drummer Bailey Van Ellis leading the charge with driving percussion. “Kaleidoscope” followed, revealing a surprising number of Balance and Composure fans in the front of the crowd. The quintet suffered some slight technical problems midway through the set, but after a slight wait “Burden” brought things back to life. “Twenty Four” — another solid cut from the band’s recent split with their like-minded Pennsylvania brothers, Tiger’s Jaw — concluded the half-hour set.

Show Your Face
Kaleidoscope
I Can’t Do This Alone
Separation
Burden
Twenty Four

Title Fight

Ten minutes later, Title Fight kicked into their blend of punk-hardcore two-minute romps with “Introvert”, the second track on 2009′s The Last Thing You Forget. In fact, nine of the band’s ten songs this evening came from that debut, including favorites like “Western Haikus” and “Memorial Field”, the latter featuring lead vocals from guitarist Jamie Rhoden. Title Fight’s energy ran through the crowd, with fans of the Kingston quartet ripping open pits in an otherwise stationary crowd during the pre-climax breakdown of “Loud and Clear”, perhaps the only song of the twenty-five minute setlist to near three minutes in length. The hard hitting “Symmetry” wrapped up an impressive setlist from the second Pennsylvania band of the evening.

Introvert
Youreyeah
Memorial Field
Western Haikus
Goldwaite
Evander
No One Stays at the Top Forever
Dreamcatchers
Loud and Clear
Symmetry

Bayside

Bayside began just after 9PM, walking on stage to the the Rocky theme song, “Gonna Fly Now”, and kicking straight into “The Walking Wounded”. Lead by guitarist Jack O’Shea’s metal-influenced leads, the song set the tone for Bayside’s set immediately. “Tortures of the Damned” had everyone singing along from the song’s opening lines (“I hate myself more than I ever let on!”) through the all-too-catchy chorus (“I’ve made mistakes, but I’ll find my way / There’s no explanation for the things I’ve failed at before / They can’t hold my hand / It just hurts to be a man through the tortures of the damned”).

The criminally under-represented Shudder contributed just two tracks, including “I Think I’ll Be Ok”, a slower — but still hard-hitting — cut from 2008. The brand new “Already Gone” shed some light on what to expect from the band’s upcoming fifth full-length, hinting at another gem in the Bayside discography. Anthony Raneri’s vocal hooks exploded on “Montauk”, and the entire crowd reciprocated the band’s pummeling energy with singalongs and circle pits.

The rarely-seen “Choice Hops and Bottled Self Esteem” was a fantastic addition to the fourteen-song setlist, with bassist Nick Ghanbarian and drummer Chris Guglielmo paving the way for the song’s blazing two-guitar solos. “Don’t Call Me Peanut” slowed things down, and really didn’t fit the band’s otherwise unrelenting setlist, but “Blame it on Bad Luck” quickly returned things to form. An impressive Weezer cover and the obligatory “Devotion and Desire” concluded Bayside’s time on stage.

The Walking Wounded
Duality
Tortures of the Damned
I Think I’ll Be Okay
Already Gone
Montauk
They’re Not Horses, They’re Unicorns
The Ghost of St. Valentine
Landing Feet First
Choice Hops and Bottled Self Esteem
Don’t Call Me Peanut
Blame it on Bad Luck
My Name is Jonas (Weezer cover)
Devotion and Desire

Bayside

Though Bayside originally promised to dig into some older cuts this fall, by the time the tour’s routing wrapped back around to the east coast it looks like they abandoned that idea entirely, removing the two Sirens and Condolences songs (“Alcohol and Alter Boys” and “Just Enough to Love You”) from their originally constructed setlist. Since it was the band’s second of three planned area visits, though, it was nice to see a decent amount of the set change. Don’t miss Bayside celebrating their tenth anniversary at the tiny Crazy Donkey on Long Island at the end of January.

Balance and Composure

Balance and Composure played first, in front of a fairly small crowd. The band stuck to material from their latest split with Tigers Jaw and their most recent EP, Only Boundaries, tossing in a brand new song (“Separation”) in the process. The five-piece, featuring lead vocals from guitarists Jon Simmons and Andrew Slaymaker, executed well during their six-song setlist. Undoubtedly paying tribute to pioneers like Mineral and recent acts such as Brand New, the band stands on their own, as well: Balance and Composure deliver their songs with refreshing integrity and urgency.

Burden
Kaleidoscope
I Can’t Do This Alone
Separation
Twenty Four
Show Your Face

Title Fight

Title Fight opened with The Last Thing You Forget‘s “Introvert” and ripped through a very brief ten-song setlist that lasted just under thirty minutes.  Vocalist Ned Russin struggled through most of the set, but thankfully guitarist Jamie Rhoden provided vocals to many of the band’s closing songs including the brand new “Dream Catcher” and 2009 favorites “Loud and Clear” and “Symmetry”. “Goldwaite”, from the band’s 2007 split with The Erection Kids, made a surprise appearance much to the delight of some passionate Title Fight fans sprinkled throughout the room. The quartet performed with remarkable energy and passion, and, with tighter vocals, could be one of the better live punk acts in the genre.

Introvert
Youreyeah
Memorial Field
Western Haikus
Goldwaite
Evander
No One Stays at the Top Forever
Dream Catcher
Loud and Clear
Symmetry

Bayside

Walking out to the famous Rocky-series pump-up music (Bill Conti’s “Gonna Fly Now”) blaring through the venue’s PA, Bayside set the tone of their set immediately with The Walking Wounded‘s title track. Two more cuts from their 2007 effort followed (“Duality” and “They’re Not Horses, They’re Unicorns”) before the band made good on their pre-tour promise to include some lesser-played old songs in the setlist. “Alcohol and Alter Boys” thrilled long-time Bayside fans, who appropriately responded with crowd-dismantling dancing. Sirens and Condolences also contributed the rarely seen “Just Enough to Love You”, and Bayside even tossed in a song from the criminally underperformed Shudder, “I Think I’ll Be Ok”.

Bayside

Of course, staples such as  “Tortures of the Damned” and “Montauk” remained in the set and were played with the kind of precision only attainable from hundreds of shows of practice. The brand new “Already Gone” made its New York debut to a surprisingly warm response, despite the song being released just days earlier exclusively through iTunes. “Half a Life” was a welcomed surprise to the hour-long setlist, but the night’s biggest shock came in the form of a Weezer cover: “My Name is Jonas”. Frontman Anthony Raneri’s unique voice gave the fifteen-year old song a new spin and allowed Bayside to capture the song as their own. As expected, “Devotion and Desire” wrapped up the fifteen song setlist with the biggest pit of the evening.

The Walking Wounded
Duality
They’re Not Horses, They’re Unicorns
Alcohol and Alter Boys
Already Gone
Tortures of the Damned
Just Enough to Love You
I Think I’ll Be Okay
Half a Life
Landing Feet First
(POP)ular Science
Montauk
Blame It On Bad Luck
My Name is Jonas (Weezer cover)
Devotion and Desire

Bayside

With just an hour to mix up four albums of material, Bayside did a commendable job of straying from their previously stale setlists. Though Shudder has still yet to see proper live treatment, the Queens quartet picked solid lesser-played tracks from The Walking Wounded (“(POP)ular Science”) and their self-titled release (“Half a Life”) to keep things fresh. By now, Bayside’s live performance is fairly established as being one of genre’s strongest; it’s nice to see that attitude applied to a different set of songs. Few bands offer Raneri’s passion or guitarist Jack O’Shea’s technical prowess, so seeing it all come to life in a live environment is even more exciting.

All photos by the excellent arielebeau.

Bayside

Bayside opened with the brief “Hello Shitty”, the first song from their 2005 self-titled album. Without wasting a second, the dark guitars of Jack O’Shea and frontman Anthony Raneri set the mood for the bleak “Tortures of the Damned”. The equally ominous “They’re Not Horses, They’re Unicorns” followed, with Raneri continuing to paint tortured images of his life and various relationships. “No One Understands” continued the band’s grim outlook, but midway through the song Raneri offered hope: “If the sun don’t shine tomorrow, we’ll survive”.

Bayside

“The Ghost of Saint Valentine”, one of the band’s standout songs from their excellent 2008 effort, Shudder, sounded great. The explosive title track from The Walking Wounded, anchored by Chris Guglielmo’s heavy percussion, found the entire crowd singing along to the song’s infectious chorus. Much of Bayside’s appeal is derived from the band’s enormous choruses, and fewer songs showcase that aspect more strongly than the tightly executed “I and I” which promptly followed “The Walking Wounded”.

Bayside

Newer favorite “Boy” and longtime favorite “Masterpiece” were terrific, but more than thirty minutes into the setlist the band’s performance was becoming extremely predictable. Bayside offered no surprises throughout their fifteen song set, sticking to the same basic setlist they established in 2008. Of the band’s thirteen songs from Shudder, just four of them received live treatment; while the band certainly picks the best songs from their older material, it would be a nice change of pace to see some of the band’s top-notch new material in a live environment.

Bayside

“Montauk” was one of the sets highlights, featuring a blistering solo by O’Shea. The band wrapped up their hour-long performance with “Devotion and Desire” as they have for much of their career; the song’s signature opening lick launched the audience into a frenzy, drawing in onlookers who had previously remained at a distance from the crowd.

Hello Shitty
Tortures of the Damned
They’re Not Horses, They’re Unicorns
No One Understands
The Ghost of Saint Valentine
The Walking Wounded
I and I
Boy
Masterpiece
Carry On
Roshambo (Rock, Paper, Scissors)
Duality
Montauk
Blame it on Bad Luck
Devotion and Desire

Bayside

Despite predictable song selection, Bayside’s performance was near-perfect during their sixty-minute set; the band put an enormous effort into each song, and Raneri pushed his voice to its limits. The band is recording a new album this fall. Judging by the merits of the band’s already-outstanding discography, the new effort is highly anticipated. Still, the band has so much material from Shudder that still hasn’t been performed live. It would be nice to see the band touch on some of their existing songs before unleashing a brand new batch.

The night’s first performance was by Valencia frontman Shane Henderson, though I unfortunately managed to catch just two songs. Henderson’s penultimate song was “Away We Go”, a song recorded by Valencia for their debut album, This Could Be a Possibility, but originally appearing on Promise of Redemption’s Lights That Flicker Will Surely Fade – Henderson’s debut solo album. “From the Second I Wake Up…”, a song from Promise of Redemption’s second album, closed the set.

JT Woodruff performed next, playing a seven-song set that included six originals and one Face to Face cover, chosen for its significance in introducing the Hawthorne Heights songwriter to punk rock. Wisely opting not to perform any of his band’s songs (even denying a request for the awful “Ohio is for Lovers”), Woodruff’s performance was somewhat enjoyable yet clearly the weakest link in an otherwise outstanding night. The set began with a song about his hometown, followed by a quick number about his daughter Avery. The set’s highlight was clearly “Friends in the Sky”, a heartfelt tribute to lost friends including former bandmate Casey Calvert, Bayside’s John “Beatz” Holohan, and recently deceased Avenged Sevenfold drummer “The Rev”. Woodruff closed his set on a less-heavy note, however, with “Least Favorite Things 2009″, a jab at the current neon culture and even Lady Gaga. The set:

(New song)
Avery
Disconnected (Face to Face cover)
(New song)
(New song)
Friends in the Sky
Least Favorite Things 2009

Vinnie Caruana

Vinnie Caruana began his set with a solid new song, moving quickly into staple “Hey” from The Movielife’s Forty Hour Train Back to Penn. “Drinking Song” and “Green Eyes”, from Caruana’s current project, I am the Avalanche, sounded great. A few more favorites from The Movielife and some rants about New York sports–specifically regarding the success of the New York Jets and the disappointments of the New York Mets–preceded “Brooklyn Dodgers”, a new I Am the Avalanche song dedicated to his mother and father in attendance. The extremely personal “I Took a Beating” closed out a solid set from the Long Island native. The full set:

(New song)
Hey (The Movielife)
Drinking Song (I am the Avalanche)
Green Eyes (I am the Avalanche)
Sailor Tattoos (The Movielife)
Walking on Glass (The Movielife)
Brooklyn Dodgers (I am the Avalanche)
I Took a Beating (I am the Avalanche)

Kevin Devine

Brooklyn boy Kevin Devine played fourth, beginning with “Brother’s Blood” from his 2009 album of the same name. Despite being stripped down to its acoustic roots, the song benefited greatly from Devine’s unfeigned and fiery delivery. “Noose Dressed Like a Necklace”, from 2003′s Make the Clocks Move, was a welcomed addition to the setlist; “Keep Ringing Your Bell” was as personal and sincere as any song all evening. Unafraid to show his political and religious convictions, “Another Bag of Bones” injected biting cynicism into the set. A promising, brand new song preceded “Cotton Crush”; “Ballgame” found Devine once again tackling politics, this time in context to his own life decisions. The final song of Devine’s excellent nine-song selection was “Yr Damned Ol’ Dad”, performed significantly slower and softer than normal. The full list:

Brother’s Blood
Noose Dressed Like a Necklace
Keep Ringing Your Bell
Another Bag of Bones
Carnival
(New song)
Cotton Crush
Ballgame
Yr Damned Ol’ Dad

Headliner Anthony Raneri began his thirteen-song setlist with a solid cover of Matt Skiba’s “Good Fucking Bye”, receiving a fairly warm response. The crowd really cheered, however, as Raneri started to play the opening notes of the extremely emotional “Don’t Call Me Peanut”. A strong cover of Bad Religion’s “Sorrow” preceded “Landing Feet First”, a song Raneri called the “first and last love song” he has ever written.

Anthony Raneri

After briefly explaining that using a capo on his guitar was new territory for the experienced frontman, Raneri performed “The Ghost of St. Valentine” from Bayside’s Shudder and Tim McGraw’s “Just to See You Smile”. Talking over the intro riff of “Duality”, Raneri commented that this song finally allowed him to have his “rockstar moment” — that is, a song with an introduction that can be extended indefinitely while the band addresses the crowd over the riff.

A sloppy Counting Crows cover followed, but Raneri rebounded with a compelling performance of “The Ballad of Bill the Saint”, a song destined one day for an Anthony Raneri solo album. Acknowledging that he has too much respect for the instrument to call himself a “true guitarist”, Raneri condeded that he probably butchers “I’ll Follow You into the Dark” but loves the song and plays it anyway. Oft covered by Bayside, Smoking Popes’s “Megan” finished the set. The full list:

Good Fucking Bye (Matt Skiba cover)
Don’t Call Me Peanut (Bayside)
Sorrow (Bad Religion cover)
Landing Feet First (Bayside)
The Ghost of St. Valentine (Bayside)
Just to See You Smile (Tim McGraw cover)
Duality (Bayside)
Blame it on Bad Luck (Bayside)
A Long December (Counting Crows cover)
I and I (Bayside)
The Ballad of Bill the Saint
I’ll Follow You into the Dark (Death Cab for Cutie cover)
Megan (Smoking Popes cover)

With each artist taking a unique approach to his set (originals, covers, and parodies), the night moved along at a rapid pace; downtime between artists was brief — it was, after all, just a microphone and a guitar that needed setup. With the longest set time and biggest fanbase in attendance, Anthony Raneri clearly stole the show. Still, Kevin Devine’s performance was the most seasoned, making it clear that as a solo artist he is by far the most talented of the batch.

Static Radio NJ kicked off the evening with their blend of Jersey punk. The three-piece, rounded out with a fourth rhythm guitarist, Dave, who learned a few songs for the night’s set, played strong for about twenty minutes. Drawing from their debut full-length, An Evening of Bad Decisions, Static Radio NJ’s sound can be likened to that of Lifetime and The Loved Ones.

Stefon Alexander, better known as P.O.S., followed with an exciting style of raw hip-hop. Far removed from the mainstream constraints of the genre, P.O.S. spent about thirty minutes tearing through cuts from 2009′s Never Better. Involving the crowd with a plethora of singalongs, the Minneapolis-born rapper connected with the punk-rock crowd and readied the audience for Bayside and The Bouncing Souls.

Directly supporting The Bouncing Souls, Bayside opened with 2005′s “Tortures of the Damned”. The Walking Wounded‘s title track followed, with the crowd exploding during its infectious chorus and Jack O’Shea’s monster solo. The lone Shudder track, “No One Understands”, was one of the night’s highlights, and it’s unfortunate that the band strays away from that excellent 2008 album.

Frontman Anthony Raneri engaged the crowd for most of the set, with giant singalong choruses on songs like “Carry On”. “Masterpiece” lead to fierce pits and dancing before pre-show request, Smoking Popes cover “Megan”, slowed things down. “Montauk” and obligatory closer “Devotion and Desire” rounded out a strong eleven-song setlist:

Tortures of the Damned
The Walking Wounded
No One Understands
Duality
Blame it on Bad Luck
They’re Not Horses, They’re Unicorns
Carry On
Masterpiece
Megan (Smoking Popes cover)
Montauk
Devotion and Desire

Following chants of “Here We Go”, The Bouncing Souls exploded on stage and tore through the Maniacal Laughter cut. The brand new “Never Say Die/When You’re Young” followed, with a string of classics including Hopeless Romantic‘s “Kid” and also its title track. The Avoid One Thing cover, “Lean On Sheena”, was a full-crowd singalong. Greg Attonito was cool and collected throughout the set, moving through old songs (such as 1994′s “The Guest”), new songs (“Ghosts on the Boardwalk”), and covers (Sick of it All’s “Good Looking Out”) with confidence and precision. The full setlist (thanks to John Fox for this information):

Here We Go
Never Say Die/When You’re Young
Kid
K8 Is Great
That Song
Hopeless Romantic
Quick Check Girl
Lean On Sheena (Avoid One Thing cover)
The Ballad Of Johnny X
Cracked
Say Anything
No Comply
Highway Kings
The Gold Song
Kids and Heroes
Ghosts On The Boardwalk
Neurotic
Punks In Vegas
Good Looking Out (Sick of it All cover)
Manthem
True Believers
Gone
Moon Over Asbury
The Guest
Sing Along Forever
The Freaks, Nerds, and Romantics

The four song encore (beginning with the instrumental “Moon Over Asbury”) ended with fan-favorite “The Freaks, Nerds, and Romantics”, and the entire crowd could not have been more pleased with The Bouncing Souls’s performance. Maniacal Laughter saw the most songs–five–but the band did a great job of reaching across their entire discography. The Bouncing Souls are set to release Ghosts on the Boardwalk in mid-January, a collection of songs issued over the last year on a series of quarterly EPs. Be sure to pick it up on Chunksaah Records, as the cuts from that album were just as strong live as the old favorites.

inTuneMusic is very interested in any submissions/corrections from this event including photographs, setlists, and audio/video. Please contact us, you will receive complete credit for any submission.