Anthony Raneri

Anthony Raneri performed for about thirty minutes, sticking to the same setlist as the night before with the addition of The Walking Wounded‘s “I and I”. The Bayside frontman’s stripped-down take on Bad Religion (“Sorrow”) works incredibly well, reducing the original tempo but still capturing the song’s heart and feel. “Landing Feet First” — a song written for his now ex-wife — displayed Raneri’s songwriting prowess, highlighting what Bayside sounds like before they add on the blistering leads and pounding rhythm section.

Don’t Call Me Peanut (Bayside cover)
Sorrow (Bad Religion cover)
Blame it on Bad Luck (Bayside cover)
You Vandal (Saves the Day cover)
Landing Feet First (Bayside cover)
I and I (Bayside cover)
Meghan (Smoking Popes cover)

Matt Pryor

Matt Pryor completely switched up his setlist from the night before, tossing out his solo material and The New Amsterdams covers in favor of a set heavy on The Get Up Kids songs including “I’m a Loner Dottie, a Rebel”, which may have been the first time he’s attempted that song acoustic. Pryor still touched on Bayside and Saves the Day with “The Ghost of St. Valentine” and “Freakish, respectively; the latter again featured part of Cee-Lo Green’s “Fuck You”. Paying tribute to his The Get Up Kids bandmate James Dewees, Pryor even covered Reggie and the Full Effect. Four Minute Mile‘s “Don’t Hate Me” wrapped up the great ten-song performance.

Holiday (The Get Up Kids cover)
Overdue (The Get Up Kids cover)
I’m a Loner Dottie, a Rebel (The Get Up Kids cover)
The Ghost Of St. Valentine (Bayside cover)
Walking on a Wire (The Get Up Kids cover)
Mass. Pike (The Get Up Kids cover)
Freakish (Save The Day cover)
Action and Action (The Get Up Kids cover)
Girl, Why’d You Run Away (Reggie and the Full Effect cover)
Don’t Hate Me (The Get Up Kids cover)

Chris Conley

Putting on antlers tossed to him by a fan, Chris Conley and Pryor performed “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” together before Conley began his set of Saves the Day covers. A few setlist swaps aside, Conley performed many of the same songs from the night before. The decade-old I’m Sorry I’m Leaving EP contributed one-third of the set, leaving out only “I Melt With You”. As it did at Music Hall of Williamsburg, 1998′s “Jodie” concluded a great set from the extremely talented Conley.

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
Three Miles Down (Saves the Day cover)
Take Our Cars Now! (Saves the Day cover)
I’m Sorry I’m Leaving (Saves the Day cover)
Jesse and My Whetstone (Saves the Day cover)
My Sweet Fracture (Saves the Day cover)
Let It All Go (Saves the Day cover)
The Way His Collar Falls (Saves the Day cover)
Rocks Tonic Juice Magic (Saves the Day cover)
Confidence Man (Matt Pryor cover)
Sell My Old Clothes, I’m Off To Heaven (Saves the Day cover)
When It Isn’t Like It Should Be (Saves the Day cover)
What Went Wrong (Saves the Day cover)
This Is Not An Exit (Saves the Day cover)
Hold (Saves the Day cover)
Jodie (Saves the Day cover)

Dustin Kensrue

Dustin Kensrue began with “I Knew You Before”, playing many of the same songs from the night before. ” Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” was a nice Christmas addition to the setlist, though, as was a cover of “Fairytale of New York”, a song about “Christmas Even in the drunk tank”. Kensrue’s solid acoustic take on “Wood & Wire” might have been the song’s first live performance, the Beggars cut always omitted when Kensrue has played with Thrice in the tri-state area.

A pleased Kevin Devine sat in back of the stage while Kensrue covered “Mesa, AZ”, a song from Bad Books, Devine’s collaboration with Manchester Orchestra frontman Any Hull. The German Christmas carol “Silent Night” sounded great, coming before Pryor joined Kensrue to cover “Oh My Sweet Carolina”. As they did on Saturday night in Brooklyn, Kensrue, Conley, Pryor, and Raneri all joined together to cover NOFX and Jawbreaker. “Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home)” concluded the tour’s last night.

Dustin Kensrue, Matt Pryor, Anthony Raneri, and Chris Conley

Mixing up the setlists just enough from night to night, the four prolific songwriters made attending both nights of the tour a very worthwhile experience. A plethora of old and rarely performed songs added to the nights’ charm, while the lightly-sprinkled Christmas covers fit well with the December anticipation of the holiday. With each performer so dedicated to their full-time band, finding an opportunity to tour by themselves is quite rare. If this tour should reassemble at any point in the future, don’t miss the chance to catch this remarkable collections of songwriters.

Anthony Raneri

Anthony Raneri performed first, beginning the evening with a cover of Matt Skiba’s “Good Fucking Bye”, one of his staples when performing solo. Raneri showcased his own songwriting talents, as well, with normally-electric Bayside songs like “Landing Feet First” and “Blame it on Bad Luck” sounding great stripped down. Save the Day’s “You Vandal” was a pleasant surprise; “Meghan”, often covered by Raneri with his full band, concluded the enjoyable seven-song set.

Good Fucking Bye (Matt Skiba cover)
Don’t Call Me Peanut (Bayside cover)
Sorrow (Bad Religion cover)
Landing Feet First (Bayside cover)
Blame it on Bad Luck (Bayside cover)
You Vandal (Saves the Day cover)
Meghan (Smoking Popes cover)

Matt Pryor

Matt Pryor performed a varied set, drawing from his own solo record, The Get Up Kids, The New Amsterdams, and other songwriters on the tour. Pryor sounded best when taking on the songs he wrote for Confidence Man or with his aforementioned bands; “The Ghost of St. Valentine” was awkward and unemotional, in complete contrast to Bayside’s original. He did better with Saves the Day’s “Freakish” — mixed with parts of “Lorelei” and Cee-Lo Green’s “Fuck You” — but “A Totally New Year” and “Hannah Hold On” were clearly some of Pryor’s better offerings.

A Totally New Year
Sympathy (The Get Up Kids cover)
The Ghost of St. Valentine (Bayside cover)
Stay on the Phone (The New Amsterdams cover)
Like a Man Possessed (The Get Up Kids cover)
Freakish (Saves the Day cover)
Proceed With Caution (The New Amsterdams cover)
Still, There’s a Light
Hannah Hold On (The Get Up Kids cover)

Matt Pryor and Chris Conley

Chris Conley joined Pryor to perform the festive “Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer”, the duo delivering a fun singalong in the spirit of the coming holiday. Conley’s solo set was almost entirely acoustic versions of Saves the Day songs, with only a cover of “Confidence Man” breaking things up near the end. The New Jersey native sounded fantastic, selecting a great hour-long setlist in the process. Conley’s Saves the Day songs were noticeably more intricate than those performed by Raneri and Pryor, with catchy finger-picked riffs adding constant variety to the set. Highlights included “Jessie and My Whetstone”, “Sell My Old Clothes, I’m Off to Heaven”, and “This is Not an Exit”. Unexpectedly, Conley concluded his time on stage with “Jodie” — the last song on Save the Day’s first record released in 1998 — pleasing longtime fans who were likely experiencing the song live for the first time.

Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer
Jessie and My Whetstone (Saves the Day cover)
I’m Sorry I’m Leaving (Saves the Day cover)
Take Our Cars Now! (Saves the Day cover)
Cars and Calories (Saves the Day cover)
Let It All Go (Saves the Day cover)
Rocks Tonic Juice Magic (Saves the Day cover)
Certain Tragedy (Saves the Day cover)
Stay (Saves the Day cover)
Sell My Old Clothes, I’m Off to Heaven (Saves the Day cover)
Confidence Man (Matt Pryor cover)
Dying Day (Saves the Day cover)
Hold (Saves the Day cover)
This is Not an Exit (Saves the Day cover)
Jodie (Saves the Day cover)

Dustin Kensrue

Unlike the previous three performers, Dustin Kensrue stuck primarily to his own solo output for the duration of his set. The beautiful “Pistol” and haunting “Consider the Ravens” from Please Come Home began the the Thrice frontman’s hour-song set. Kensrue covered one of Saves the Day’s oldest songs (“Three Miles Down”) before jumping into a stripped down version of one of Thrice’s newest (“In Exhile”).

Kensrue reflected on the Christian side of Christmas with “Go Tell it On the Mountain”, performing the traditional song with hints of Tom Waits’s own adaptation tossed in. Kensrue was undoubtedly at his best on songs from his 2007 debut — such as the fast-paced “I Knew You Before” and “Blood and  Wine” — but acoustic takes on tracks from Thrice’s The Artist in the Ambulance were also impressive. Kensrue touched on Waits again with the beautiful “Down There by the Train”, finally wrapping things up with help from Pryor on a Ryan Adams cover.

Pistol
Consider the Ravens
This is War
Three Miles Down (Saves the Day cover)
In Exile (Thrice cover)
I Knew You Before
Go Tell it On the Mountain
This Good Night Is Still Everywhere
Please Come Home
Stare at the Sun (Thrice cover)
Blanket of Ghosts
Blood and Wine
The Artist in the Ambulance (Thrice cover)
Beggars (Thrice cover)
Down There by the Train (Tom Waits cover)
Oh My Sweet Carolina (Ryan Adams cover)
Linoleum (NOFX cover)
Boxcar (Jawbreaker cover)
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) (Darlene Love cover)

Anthony Raneri, Matt Pryor, and Chris Conley

All four singer-songwriters joined together “to play some punk rock songs” (and one Christmas classic) to close the evening. Punk in Drublic‘s “Linoleum” went first, with the quartet of men in their thirties smiling ear-to-ear while singing lines like “I’ve got a bed, and a guitar, and a dog named Bob who pisses on my floor”. Jawbreaker’s “Boxcar” was chilling and graceful, thanks to both Blake Schwarzenbach’s lyrical prowess and the collective attitudes of Kensrue, Pryor, Conley, and Raneri. Phil Spector’s often-covered “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” concluded the evening, sending the sold out crowd into the winter cold smiling and warm from the enchanting evening; the lucky ones would be returning to New York City on Sunday for the tour’s second night.

John Lefler

Carrabba’s Dashboard Confessional bandmate John Lefler performed first, using just acoustic guitar or piano for a brief twenty-five minute set. Lefler’s six simple songs were generally easy-going and enjoyable, showcasing a side of the talented songwriter often overshadowed by Carrabba in Dashboard Confessional. Though the set began with a brand new song, the rest of the selections came from 2009′s Better By Design, including the title track that went last just before 8PM.

(new song)
Afraid Anymore
Dream Your Life Away
Ordinary Guy
Lucy
Better By Design

Cory Branan

Cory Branan brought his acoustic guitar on stage a few minutes later, demonstrating his incredible singer-songwriter skills to a very receptive crowd. Adept at storytelling, “Prettiest Waitress in Memphis” was immediately likeable and forced the sold out Webster Hall audience to pay close attention to the Mississippi native. “Tall Green Grass”, often covered by Carrabba, sounded wonderful. Mesmerizing finger-picking and slap guitar playing carried Branan’s Southern stories, while his distinct voice and ability to hold notes in a wide range brought the tales to life. “A Girl Named GO”, the first track from 12 Songs, concluded Branan’s excellent twenty-five minute set.

Prettiest Waitress in Memphis
Tall Green Grass
Freefall
Sour Mash
The Corner
A Girl Named GO

River City Extension

To fit with the evening’s theme of acoustic performances, a stripped down version of River City Extension took the stage at 8:45PM. Primary songwriter Joseph Michelini lead the way on guitar, backed by vocalist Sam Tacon, drummer Mike Costaney, cellist Jenn Fantaccione, and trumpeter Dan Melius. With three members absent, the New Jersey band performed slightly different takes on songs from their 2010 debut and used the occasion to perform a few non-album songs more suited for the unplugged atmosphere.

River City Extension

“Today, I Feel Like I’m Evolving” was fairly straight-forward, the introspective cut already a largely acoustic number; Fantaccione’s subtle cello parts do a nice job of complementing Michelini’s fingerpicking.  “Something Salty, Something Sweet” and “Adrienne” work better with a full band, but the somewhat softer approach to these songs was still quite pleasant. Guitarist Nick Cucci joined for “Waiting in the Airport”, helping flesh out the …And the Unmistakable Man closing track. New songs “Welcome to Pittsburgh” and “Ballad of Oregon” sounded great, the latter closing River City Extension’s tightly-executed forty-five minute set.

Today, I Feel Like I’m Evolving
Something Salty, Something Sweet
Adrienne
Welcome to Pittsburgh
Friends and Family
Waiting in the Airport
South for the Winter
Ballad of Oregon

Dashboard Confessional

Armed with just an acoustic guitar, Chris Carrabba began tackling his first Dashboard Confessional album at 10PM. The oddly tuned “Screaming Infidelities” had the entire crowd singing along from the song’s first words, a smiling Carrabba struggling to sing above the audience. Introduced as a song about a pickup truck and a bad girlfriend, “The Sharp Hint of New Tears” went next, followed by the very rarely played “Living in Your Letters”. The Swiss Army Romance title track ended in a full singalong, as it often does during most Dashboard Confessional concerts. Audience participation continued on “A Plain Morning”, with the sold out Webster Hall contributing the “again” harmonies to the song’s final moments. Carrabba used “Ender Will Save Us All” as a thank-you to Amy Fleisher, the founder of Fiddler Records who originally took a chance on Dashboard Confessional ten years ago.

Dashboard Confessional

After “Shirts and Gloves”, Carrabba continued into another set of Dashboard Confessional rarities and favorites that concluded with The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most closer “This Bitter Pill”. After a short break, “Best Deceptions” lead a four-song encore that included 2006′s “Stolen” and “a song about Peter Parker”. Obligatory closer “Hands Down” took Carrabba off the stage, a satisfied crowd singing in unison: “And I knew that you meant it / that you meant it.”

Screaming Infidelities
The Sharp Hint of New Tears
Living In Your Letters
The Swiss Army Romance
Turpentine Chaser
A Plain Morning
Age Six Racer
Again I Go Unnoticed
Ender Will Save Us All
Shirts and Gloves
Ghost of a Good Thing
The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most
The Brilliant Dance
The Good Fight
Remember To Breathe
Get Me Right
This Bitter Pill
Best Deceptions
Stolen
Vindicated
Hands Down

Dashboard Confessional

Carrabba’s vocals could not have sounded better during his ninety-minute setlist, performing decade-old songs with the urgency and passion of a wet-eared teenage musician. Alone with just an acoustic guitar for twenty-one songs, the Dashboard Confessional frontman showcased his remarkable command of not just the stringed instrument but also his voice. Constantly appreciative of and thankful for his fans, Carrabba’s undeniable charm and charisma enhanced a great performance of truly well-written songs.

Twin Tigers

Twin Tigers opened the evening at 8PM, fronted by Matthew Rain and Aimee Morris. The Georgia natives performed for thirty minutes, delivering their take on traditional rock and roll blended with indie rock. The quartet’s performance was generally enjoyable, though not particularly memorable, during their seven songs.

Tim Kasher

Tim Kasher and his supporting band performed next, opening with “I’m Afraid I’m Gonna Die Here” from The Game of Monogamy. Though Kasher is the lead creative force behind numerous projects, the aforementioned 2010 record is the first to be released eponymously. This evening, Kasher would be primarily promoting that record, though the set did include a handful of covers ranging from his own works (“Empty Bed”, “Driftwood”) to David Bowie (“Soul Love”). Surrounded by drummer Dylan Ryan and multi-instrumentalists Geoff Dolce and Patrick Newbery, Kasher exhibited a strange calm not often seen when the frontman is touring with his most well-known project, Cursive.

Tim Kasher

The band’s forty-minute setlist was never full, featuring a plethora of instruments including keyboard, violin, and horns to bring Kasher’s marriage-themed stories to life. B-side “Just Don’t Get Caught” was decidedly well-done, and the peculiar polyphonic melodica on “Empty Bed” was interesting to witness live. The quartet’s performance of Cursive’s “Driftwood” from The Ugly Organ was the set’s highlight, particularly since Kasher skipped the song the last time Cursive was in town. The lyrically clever, but brutally honest and straightforward, “Bad, Bad Dreams” concluded the excellent eleven-song outing.

I’m Afraid I’m Gonna Die Here
No Fireworks
Surprise, Surprise
There Must Be Something I’ve Lost
Empty Bed (The Good Life cover)
Just Don’t Get Caught
Cold Love
Soul Love (David Bowie cover)
A Grown Man
Driftwood: A Fairytale (Cursive cover)
Bad, Bad Dreams

Minus the Bear

“Secret Country” opened Minus the Bear‘s eighty-minute sensual performance; weaving tales of desire with vivid imagery (“there is water on the concrete, rivulets on the face / you release me from your kiss /and do a dance for me and the rain”), frontman Jake Snider delivered his trademark charm to the sold out crowd. Minus the Bear effortlessly fused their entire discography together, moving from the driving “Memphis and 53rd” to the twisted time-signatures of “Thanks for the Killer Game of Crisco Twister”. Even the airy “White Mystery” seemed perfectly placed in the setlist; with so many moving parts and intricate riffs, the order and flow of the Seattle quintet’s setlist is no accident.

Minus the Bear

Indeed, part of Minus the Band’s appeal is to draw the listener into a lush, mesmerizing world. Though the band achieves this on each of their four full-length records, capturing that enchantment live is another task entirely. Thankfully, the band magnificently recreates the complexities of their studio output, tying together both straightforward, danceable jams (“Into the Mirror”) and more sophisticated numbers (“Animal Backwards”). Rarely seen “I’m Totally Not Down With Rob’s Alien” fit right in alongside staples like “The Game Needed Me” and “Absinthe Party at the Fly Honey Warehouse”, the latter closing out Minus the Bear’s setlist. “Knights” brought the band back on stage, though, with “Pachuca Sunrise” — featuring an extended outro — properly concluding the evening just before 11:30PM.

Minus the Bear

Their second area-headlining performance in support of Omni this year, Minus the Bear should be commended for mixing up the setlist from their summer tour, playing nine different songs from just a few months ago. Touching on all but “Excuses” and “Fooled by the Night” from their latest record across the two nights, Minus the Bear displayed respect and appreciation for their fans by keeping their live performance fresh and exciting.

Fifteen Fleeting

Locals Fifteen Fleeting began the evening at 8PM with a stale take on radio-ready rock. The four-piece band did little to impress, sounding both dull and recycled, like on “Loud and Clear” which seemed to borrow from The Gaslight Anthem. Other cuts from the band’s twenty-minute performance  included “Brace” and “Away from the Sun”, but the five song set was generally unimpressive.

The Gaslight Anthem

The Gaslight Anthem wasted no time warming up an anxious My Chemical Romance crowd, the New Jersey natives diving in with “The Spirit of Jazz”. “Boxer”, without it’s signature introduction, followed, and a good portion of the crowd danced along to the 2010 cuts. Older fans appreciated “Boomboxes and Dictionaries” and “We Came to Dance”, while casual, radio-only fans were genuinely excited to hear singles like “Old White Lincoln”.

Much praise has been given to The Gaslight Anthem’s live headlining performances, and most of that rings true when the band finds themselves supporting a much more popular act. Renowned for their twenty-five song or more sets, The Gaslight Anthem managed to fit fifteen cuts into just under an hour, an impressive feat accomplished by not wasting time with unnecessary banter or equipment changes. More importantly, Brian Fallon delivered a solid vocal performance with the rest of the band sounding as tight as ever.

The band just started to heat up and gain the crowd’s favor with a potent string of “American Slang”, “Great Expectations”, “The ’59 Sound” when they returned to their trusty set closer, “The Backseat”. Normally a solid way to end the evening, the song appealed only to owners of The ’59 Sound and therefore left most of the young teenage crowd in the dark during the band’s final minutes, an unfortunate end to an otherwise rousing set that likely won the band a new demographic of fans.

The Spirit of Jazz
Boxer
Boomboxes and Dictionaries
We Came to Dance
The Diamond Church Street Choir
Old White Lincoln
Bring it On
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
Miles Davis and the Cool
The Queen of Lower Chelsea
Orphans
American Slang
Great Expectations
The ’59 Sound
The Backseat

My Chemical Romance

Just after 10PM, Steve Montano kicked things off for My Chemical Romance as he does on the band’s latest record with the “Look Alive, Sunshine” monologue, segueing directly into the touring six-piece’s explosive “Na Na Na”. Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge contributed the hooky-heavy “Thank You for the Venom”, the crowd drowning out vocalist Gerard Way by singing along to every word.

A cover of Bob Dylan’s “Desolation Row” somehow worked, and, because the band had previously recorded and released the song for a movie soundtrack, much of the early-teen crowd sang along. “Planetary” begs for live treatment, and My Chemical Romance executed the brand new song with the amount of energy that renders its studio version obsolete. Mega-single “I’m Not Okay” followed, and Roseland appeared to peak in energy.

That is, of course, until Way started to address the crowd. Hordes of young girls pushed forward for a chance to catch a closer glimpse of the frontman. Speaking over the introductory chords of the suggestive “You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison”, Way instructed all of the boys in attendance to take off their shirts. Shirts and bras alike flew through the audience as My Chemical Romance’s army of fans hung onto Way’s every word.

The only logical thing for My Chemical Romance to do next was to give the sweat-covered crowd a breather. This came in the form of a slowed down, new version of 2004′s “The Ghost of You”. Things picked up when the drums kicked in for “House of Wolves”, though, and a great performance of “The Only Hope For Me is You” kept things moving along. “Mama” was more interesting than its fairly dull studio recording, and though “Welcome to the Black Parade” is a great album track, the song really shines live with Way straining his voice to deliver the song’s personal lyrics.

Prior to “SING”, A Die Hard 2 remark from Way flew over the heads of a crowd largely born years after the excellent action film, but it didn’t matter when My Chemical Romance kicked into the solid Danger Days cut about singing for unity. Young and old, fans of the band sang together for “boys”, “girls”, and “the world”. “DESTROYA” was a similar full-scale singalong, and somehow the strange tune is as catchy as anything the band has written. “Helena” predictably closed My Chemical Romance’s set, but the band returned with “Cancer” (lead by James Dewees on piano) just moments later.

In a slot usually reserved for a hit single, the band’s last song was “The Kids From Yesterday” from Danger Days, released just two weeks earlier. My Chemical Romance’s rabid fanbase was already up to speed on the album, though, and the song was well-received and few fans on the floor were left in the dark to the track’s simple closing words: “We are the kids from yesterday, today, today”.

Look Alive, Sunshine
Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)
Thank You for the Venom
Desolation Row (Bob Dylan cover)
Planetary (GO!)
I’m Not Okay (I Promise)
You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison
The Ghost of You
House of Wolves
The Only Hope For Me is You
Mama
Welcome To The Black Parade
Teenagers
SING
DESTROYA
Helena
Cancer
The Kids From Yesterday

Throughout the evening, it became clear that brand new tracks from Danger Days dwarfed My Chemical Romance’s old cuts, making songs like “Helena” or “You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison” sound hollow in comparison to the band’s thicker, improved sound. One third of the set came from the band’s latest record, a small preview of what to expect when the band goes on tour in mid-2011. Just as they performed The Black Parade in its entirety for quite some time, expect My Chemical Romance to take on much of Danger Days on their upcoming headlining tour. With this fourth full-length, the New Jersey band undoubtedly turned the page they were grasping at in 2006.

All photographs by the incredible Kenami.