Coming of age as a scrappy young punk rocker in the mid 1990’s, there were a few bands that were always mentioned. NOFX, Bad Religion, Pennywise, Descendents, and The Queers were always blasting from one of my friends crappy cars. But in the background, like a wonderfully kept secret, I heard the same name spoken over and over again…Avail. I would hear how amazing they were. I would hear about how their fans are rabid in their fandom. But I never heard their music. No one would play it for me. It was their little secret. One day my friend initiated me. We were going to a show at the Wetland (probably the Queers), and on the way there, he told me that Avail was opening. Finally, I was going to know about them! I was blown away at how amazing they were. They lived up to and surpassed the hype. TO this day, I count that show among the best shows I’ve ever been to.

That was in 1995.

On April 23, that magical feeling once again overwhelmed me when they headlined Maxwell’s in Hoboken. The tiny room was packed with NJ punk rockers that I hadn’t seen in years. These were all people that had been waiting as long as I had to see Avail again. No one walked away disappointed.

You need to understand, Avail isn’t touring to support a new record. They re-released three of their early records, and THAT is what they are supporting, and that is all they drew their set from. If the songs weren’t on Over the James, 4AM Friday, or Dixie it wasn’t played. And for a room full of old school fans of theirs, that is all they wanted to hear. I can’t truly review this show. This 200+ crowd, just like myself, had been waiting for over a decade for this moment. I can’t tell you what it was like to feel the floor vibrate and to see the crowd out-sing Tim when they played “Order” and “Sanctuary 13.” Words don’t exist that can describe what it was like to see 200 people explode with energy at the sound of one chord. They ended their set with “FCA” immediately followed by “Simple Song” which prompted everyone in the crowd to rush towards the stage, pump their fists, and stretch their vocal chords to the limit. It was just amazing.