“Weekend Warriors” comes home to Asheville…
On February 22, 2008, Victory Records band Secret Lives! Of The Freemasons headlined another record release show for their new album “Weekend Warriors” that was released on February 19th. Honestly, I had a good time at this show, but it wasn’t quite as good as Feb. 19th’s record release show.
The first band to start the night was Fairground Avenue from Hendersonville, NC. As they started their set, I wasn’t too impressed, but as they continued to play, they started sounding a bit better to me. With them being heavily influenced by Alternative/Emo music, they already started off lower on my interested scale, but overall they weren’t too bad.
The second band to support Secret Lives!… was Kentucky band, Creatures. I liked these guys. They have a definite Alternative influence, but there was something about them that I really enjoyed their set. their sound all around was pretty awesome! Really, I wouldn’t mind seeing these guys play again and I have to put them as my second favorite band of the night.
My third favorite band for the evening was Charlotte’s own, Harvard. They played a pretty good set that I enjoyed, but they were pretty bizarre sounding. Not bizarre in a bad way, but they had a strange sound that was pretty enjoyable. Musically, these guys are definitely talented, but their vocalist has an amazing singing voice. Overall, they put on a great show and I wouldn’t mind seeing them again at some point either.
At last, it was time for my, obviously, favorite band of the evening to run the crowd. Secret Lives! Of The Freemasons took the stage with great energy and blew through a great set, once again, including songs from their new album like “Chug and Leave”, “Mascara”, and “Life Begins at 40oz.”. As seen before, Jim and Tucker were throwin’ it down on guitar as Josh was bassin’ it up and Travis was beatin’ on the skins! Brien was on his game once again as he belted out this great set and finished off a good show. As with a couple of the other bands, I’d definitely like to these guys play live again, they really put on a great show!
All in all, this was a great shows despite driving 4 hours to attend. Kudos to all the bands for putting on this show and entertaining the crowd so much!
“Weekend Warriors” in full effect on Tuesday night…
On February 19, 2008, Victory Records band Secret Lives! Of the Freemasons headlined the first record release show for their new album “Weekend Warriors”. The great mix of supporting bands for the night were Defy the Hunter, Embracing Goodbye, Dead Eyes, and Akissforjersey. Honestly, what I expected the show to be like and the way it actually turned out were almost completely opposite. I went to Greensboro expected a more Alternative/Emo show, but I was completely blown away by a phenomenal Metalcore/Alternative show North Carolina style!
The first band to kick the night off was Greensboro’s own Defy the Hunter. These guys were the perfect choice to pen the show! Their performance was INSANE! The guitarists Steven and Sam were rippin’ it up their mean 6-strings as bassist Paul was runnin’ a smooth, yet nasty bass line! While this was goin’ on, drummer Josh was showin’ off his massive double-bass skils and vocalist Cowboy was proving that he could be, as far as I’m concerned, the next Howard Jones (Killswitch Engage). Cowboy’s screams and clean vocals were equally on point! Overall, this band was the first piece of proof for the night that North Carolina is pushing out some incredible Metalcore bands!
The second piece of proof was the second band to play, Embracing Goodbye. Hailing from Four Oaks, NC, this five-piece definitely has the Southern spirit in them, but they can put on one awesome show! Mixing older Heavy metal with today’s Metal, EG helped mix up the styles a bit and kept the show interesting. Much like Defy the Hunter, Embracing Goodbye put on an amazing show that was filled to the brim with energy! Guitarists Travis Avery and Josh Kelly joined bassist Erik “Easy” Huffman in “throwing” their guitars around while tearin’ it up. At one point, all three held their guitars over their heads to reveal the phrase “Bringin’ Sexy Back” posted on the backs of their guitars! It was great! While they were killin’ it on guitars, drummer Casey Allen also proved his excellent double-bass playing abilities and vocalist Paul Huffman showcased his incredible talents along with Travis’ vocal inputs. With all these elements added together, the show continued to make it’s way through the ranks to Secret Lives! Of The Freemasons.
The next stop along this Metalcore thrill ride was another Greensboro, NC band, Dead Eyes. Honestly, this band probably had the most interesting sounding element of the whole night…their screamer, Kyle! This guy’s scream was one of the weirdest thing I’ve EVER heard! Musically, however, Dead Eyes had it goin’ on! If you want to hear some HEAVY breakdowns, go see these guys live! Their breakdowns were massive! With those two elements included, these guys put on a great show and kept the night proving that Metalcore is alive on the East Coast.
The last band to play before SL!… was Akissforjersey from Pilot Mountain, NC. Althogh this band wasn’t my favorite of the whole night, I still enjoyed their set. These guys put on a good show despite loss of voice from vocalist Zach, who lost his voice recording the new album, and some electrical issues for guitarist Cory. Other than those two things, the set went great and I really wouldn’t mind seeing them again when they’re all at full strength.
Finally, it was time for Secret Lives! Of The Freemasons to take the stage! As they began their set, the crowd was small, but ready to go. SL!… played through a great set including songs off their brand new album such as “Mascara”, “The New Whack”, “Chug and Leave”, and “Life Begins at 40oz.”. Even though they were playing to a really small crowd and this was their first show since one of the members left the band, Secret Lives!… proved they still have what it takes to be a great band. Vocalist Brien was on top of his game all night as guitarists Tucker and Jim jammed on through the set. Bassist Josh and drummer Travis provided the backbone for the band through the whole set including two encore songs. Overall, their performance was great and I can’t wait to see them at their second record release show in their hometown, Asheboro, NC.
All in all, this show was definitely worth going to and I would suggest seeing any of these bands live if you get the chance! You’ll be glad you did!
Secret Lives! Of The Freemasons – Weekend Warriors
Victory Records
(3.5/5)
After listening to Weekend Warriors, I knew I had listened to a potentially great album, but I was left with a feeling that there was something missing. After consulting old Secret Lives!… material, I figured out what’s missing. Screaming! I know that there is a little bit in a couple of the songs on the new album and that not EVERY band should have screaming, but I believe that screaming is what helped bring this band’s vocal sound together in old material. I’m definitely not knocking the vocal talent the guys from this band posses and I also realize that, perhaps, the band wanted to change for this album. I give them credit for creating a good album, it’s just not really the style I generally prefer. Overall, the music written for this album is great and the vocals are expertly applied, but at this point, they are not exactly my favorite of all the Secret Lives!… material available. Although, the more I listen to it, the more I like it. All in all, this is a great album, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys listening to the Alternative/Emo style of music!
