You know, I’ve been receiving advanced CDs from record labels for close to 15 years and I’ve never even considered putting them on the Web for others to steal. While I have no problem “sampling” existing catalog CDs from the Web and checking out albums from bands I don’t know, I really think it takes the wrong kind of balls for someone to upload a record that hasn’t seen the light of day yet and kill a chunk of a band’s income before they even have a chance to make a dime off of it.

I’m sure I sound like a hypocrite—I’ve stolen my fair share of CDs from the Web, but I always make an effort to support a band I like, be it by purchasing their merch, seeing them live, or buying their records.

This evening, I got an e-mail from my buddy Austin at Epitaph Records fuming that the Alkaline Trio’s new record had been leaked well over a month before it was set to come out. I immediately noted that this wouldn’t be an issue (or as big of one) if labels only sent out vinyl records for review.

He laughed (virtually).
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Rise Against, Alkaline Trio, Thrice, Gaslight Anthem
Roseland Ballroom, NYC
October 13, 2008

View Photolog on Flickr

It’s been a few years since melodic hardcore giants Rise Against played Manhattan and the hipster saturated island has been starving for some decent rock & roll. Luckily, the Chicago-based quartet brought a healthy dose of adrenaline-charged punk rock along with a nice medley of opening bands to fatten up the trolls in skinny jeans.

On paper, the support for the evening leaned towards emo, but in truth, what sounds lame on Fuse comes off much better in a live hall. Case in point, Gaslight Anthem. For weeks these tattooed Jersey boys have been cloggin up the boob tube with their Bouncing Souls meets Bruce Springsteen posturing. Guess what? They actually rock…and they kinda sound like Bruce Springsteen on speed. I thoroughly enjoyed their set and look forward to hearing the full length.

The same can’t be said for Thrice. I used to love these guys when they sounded like a mellower version of Strife, but the moment I saw the keyboards on stage I got worried. Sure, some of their stuff still resides in the same city as say the Blood Brothers, but they lost me the moment they reached for the Radiohead vibe. Yes, I was bored during Thrice.

With Alkaline Trio you know what you’re in for. They look like AFI, but sound like Eve 6. They are amazing musicians, but the lyrics seem geared for the Emily the Strange set. They can pass for wussies, but at least they don’t have keyboards. I actually was quite entertained by the trio of gothic punks, and if it weren’t for my anxiousness to see Rise Against, I might have actually sang along to some of their catchier numbers.

But then came Rise Against. Read the rest of this entry »