My Favorite Concerts of 2010 (Part 2: 10-1)

10.  Taking Back Sunday @ Starland Ballroom

June 22, 2010

What else can I say besides this was the first show where the original lineup of Taking Back Sunday took the stage. That’s right, John Nolan is back! Us folk in New Jersey were lucky enough to be where Taking Back Sunday decided to perform, and boy was it a show! They played a number of their hits including a Straylight Run cover.

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9.  Passion Pit w/ Tokyo Police Club @ Governors Island

June 30, 2010

Want to know the best dance party I attended in 2010 was? It was at Governors Island in New York. Yes, we had to take a ferry to get to the venue, but honestly I’m surprised we didn’t sink the island with how much dancing was going on. Passion Pit put on one hell of a show to a sold out crowd in the outdoors of summer. There was just a sea of people singing and dancing to every song. If you ever get the opportunity to see these guys, check them out. Trust me.

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8.  Thursday w/ Four Year Strong @ Starland Ballroom

December 30, 2010

This was the annual end-of-the-year concert that Thursday hosts, but this year it was special. Thursday planned to play Full Collapse in its entirety! Of course the concert sold out (it was over-packed in my opinion) and they had Four Year Strong as one of their openers. While FYS put on a great show, it was Thursday’s night as they rocked through Full Collapse. The crowd was energetic and so was the band. This was my favorite show at Starland Ballroom of 2010.

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7.  My Chemical Romance w/ The Gaslight Anthem  @ Roseland Ballroom

December 3, 2010

I’ll be honest, I was never a My Chemical Romance fan throughout my years in high school and college when they hit the scene. But when their new album dropped, and when I heard they were playing a show with The Gaslight Anthem, I finally gave them a listen. I was glad I did because they’re a whole lot of fun. While The Gaslight Anthem played a good set, this just wasn’t their crowd. MCR didn’t play a show in the States for quite a while, so the reaction they received was ridiculous. Just YouTube some of the videos and you’ll see what I’m talking about. Anyway, MCR put on a hell of a show playing all of their hits. Their nationwide tour has been selling out almost instantly. I wouldn’t mind seeing those guys again soon.

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6.  The Arcade Fire w/ Spoon @ Madison Square Garden

August 4, 2010

My favorite Canadian rockers released one of the best albums of 2010 The Suburbs and then played two arena shows at Madison Square Garden. I was lucky enough to attend one of them. Even though arena shows don’t have the same feeling because your bound to a seated area, The Arcade Fire are simply too big for any other kind (besides festivals). So I’ll take what I can get. Of course, they didn’t disappoint. The video is from a live recording (and streaming) that was directed by Terry Gilliam.

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5.  Where’s the Band Tour @ Highline Ballroom

December 12, 2010

I’m not sure if too many people were aware of this intimate concert that featured the lead singers of Thrice, Saves the Day, The Get Up Kids, and Bayside. Anyway, these four front-men played acoustic sets of their projects, solo work, and covers. There just aren’t words that can describe how incredible this show was. I’ll let the videos do the talking.

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4.  Sufjan Stevens @ Beacon Theater

November 15, 2010

There’s this artist named Sufjan Stevens who is easily among my favorite artists of all-time. He’s ambitious, experimental, honest, and spiritual with his music. I’ve been meaning to attend one of his concerts for years now, and I finally got the chance to see him this past year. His show is unlike any other that I’ve seen before. There was a projector, a clear screen in front of the band, dancers, on-stage costume changes, confetti and beach balls in the crowd, and a large band playing a wide range of instruments. I hope it’s not too long until I experience another Sufjan Stevens show. He is quite original.

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3.  The Gaslight Anthem @ Radio City Music Hall

September 30, 2010

The Gaslight Anthem were my favorite band of 2010. Sure, I kicked myself for not listening to them from the start, but better late than never, right? Well I listened to all of their material this past year and simply fell in love with their music. They are without a doubt my favorite band from New Jersey. When they played to a sold out crowd at Radio City Music Hall, it became one of my favorite shows of the year. These guys cannot do me wrong. Attending the show with my good buddies just made the night more memorable. Whenever The Gaslight Anthem plays a show, I will be there.

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2.  Brand New @ Rutgersfest

April 30, 2010

Who doesn’t like Brand New? We’re talking about a band that started out as a pop-punk band and then transcended their sound during the next two albums to become one of the most beloved bands to date. They started out by playing basement shows, upgraded to clubs, and now are selling out arenas. So when the news that Brand New would be playing Rutgersfest, I jumped at the opportunity to see them rock out at an outdoor stage in the middle of the afternoon. To make things even better… the show was free. God bless you Rutgers! They played an amazing set and it felt good to rock out to Brand New’s music this past year, since they go on plenty of breaks. These guys will always be one of my favorites from high school.

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1.  Weezer – Memories Tour @ Roseland Ballroom

December 17 – 18, 2010

When I started to make this list it was obvious, in my head, what concert was going to have the top spot. This was arguably the best show(s) that I have ever been to. This was truly the year of bands playing albums in its entirety, but nothing comes close to seeing Weezer play their best two albums in its entirety on back-to-back nights! Sure, I dished out about $150 for both tickets, but it was well worth the money. Weezer opened up the shows with a bunch of hits that spanned throughout their career, in reverse chronological order. And then they played the albums straight through with no talking whatsoever in-between songs. Weezer are rock stars and they know it. Hearing songs like “Pink Triangle,” “Jamie,” “The World Has Turned and Left Me Here,” “Across the Sea,” “Butterfly,” and “Only in Dreams” were definite highlights, but those two nights combined was a memory I will never forget. Thank you Weezer for two of the greatest times of my life. The only drawback to this is that I simply never want to see Weezer again, because there is no way they could ever top these performances. This was my farewell to an awesome band.

The Top 6 Bands I Saw at Bamboozle 2010

6.  Saves the Day

I love Saves the Day, so their return to their home state’s music festival was exciting for the audience and the band. Even though they played the same songs as they did during their tour with New Found Glory, it was still a wonderful performance. Saves the Day mixed a few of their new songs with old classics for the fans to enjoy. The crowd went nuts during hits like “Firefly” and “At Your Funeral.” I can never get enough of Saves the Day.

Setlist:

All-Star Me
The End
Radio
Anywhere With You
Firefly
Holly Hox, Forget Me Nots
Can’t Stay the Same
Eulogy
Freakish
Shoulder to the Wheel
At Your Funeral
Kaleidoscope

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5.  Paramore

Even though the disrespect of Drake’s overlong performance was a buzzkill for the thousands of fans waiting for Paramore, once they came on everyone left all their frustration behind and enjoyed the Nashville pop-rockers light up the stage with their energy and their professionalism. Front-woman Hayley Williams has matured a lot since Paramore first formed and now has the stage presence comparable to that of Gwen Stefani. Her vocal range has also improved dramatically since their debut album “All We Know is Falling.” As the headliners of Saturday, the pop-punk crowd went bonkers for these stars.The highlight of their set was when they played their hit “crushcrushcrush” followed by an extended-rock version of “Let the Flames Begin.” I absolutely loved the excitement the band had for headlining Bamboozle and they returned the favor by putting on a memorable set.

Setlist:

Looking Up
That’s What You Get
Playing God
Pressure
For a Pessimist, I’m Pretty Optimistic
Turn It Off
The Only Exception
Whoa
crushcrushcrush
Let the Flames Begin
Ignorance
Where the Lines Overlap
Careful
Brick By Boring Brick
Decode
Misery Business

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4.  Motion City Soundtrack

These guys are definitely one of my favorite bands to see live. Their energy and crowd-friendly tunes with sing-a-longs make a perfect blend of an awesome live performance. Out of the entire weekend, Motion City Soundtrack had one of the best and most fun crowds. There were a lot of people in the audience for MCS and they returned the favor by putting on a totally rocking set.

Setlist:

Worker Bee/The Future Freaks Me Out
My Favorite Accident
Her Words Destroyed My Planet
This is for Real
Attractive Today
A Lifeless Ordinary (Need a Little Help)
Broken Heart
Disappear
L.G.F.U.A.D
Everything is Alright

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3.  Girl Talk

I’ll admit, I had my doubts for Gregg Michael Gillis (better known as his stage name Girl Talk) when my friends talked about him. After some research, I couldn’t comprehend how much fun listening to samples of songs mashed together could be. But with a laptop on stage, Gillis brought his game to the stage and pumped out forty minutes of club-like mash-ups that had the entire crowd (including the dozens of people on stage) dancing with their arms in the air. Add on the toilet paper leaf-blowers, beach balls, confetti, and light show at dusk and it was an outdoor, dance-party, mayhem of fun. Girl Talk was definitely the big surprise for me this weekend. I never knew I could have so much fun at an artist I knew nothing about.

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2.  Weezer

Ah yes. The headliners of the entire festival: Weezer. This was my first time seeing the nerd-rock legends. I was supposed to see them at Susquehanna Center a few months ago but Rivers’ bus accident resulted in the cancelation of that concert. So as you can imagine, I was extremely stoked for the last band of the weekend. It was the perfect way to end an insanely fun weekend.

Weezer packed a powerful punch as they basically played all of their hits they ever recorded. Rivers was moving all around the stage, jumping on the drumset, spazzing out, dancing, smashing a ukulele over his head, and throwing guitars and mic stands everywhere. This was a lot more entertaining than the solemn Weezer that I was expecting. Although I was a bit disappointed with the setlist, they still put on an amazing show.

Rivers gave the fans in the back a close-up view when he walked into the crowd for “Let It All Hang Out.” The highlight of their set was performing the insanely popular and edgy “Say It Ain’t So.” And of course, their covers of MGMT’s “Kids” and Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” was something to remember.

Setlist:

Hash Pipe
Troublemaker
Undone – The Sweater Song
Surf Wax America
Let It All Hang Out
Perfect Situation
Dope Nose (Scott Shriner singing)
Say It Ain’t So
Can’t Stop Partying
Why Bother? (Brian Bell singing)
(If You’re Wondering If I want You To) I Want  You To
My Name is Jonas
Beverly Hills

Encore:
Pork and Beans
Kids/Poker Face Cover

Encore 2:
Island in the Sun
Buddy Holly

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1.  Something Corporate

The long-awaited return of Andrew McMahon’s Something Corporate was greeted by hungry fans as the sun was setting on Saturday. Personally, Something Corporate has been on a list of bands I have to see for years. And since Andrew’s been with Jack’s Mannequin for the past half decade, this opportunity was long overdue. All I can say is that I was not disappointed one bit by SoCo’s East Coast reunion performance. It was a privilige to hear the songs that I grew up with through high school and the crowd for SoCo was nothing less than stellar. I only wish they had a longer set time instead of handing the night to those mainstream radio acts in Ke$ha and Drake. I can only hope for a reunion tour across the country. If that happens, you can bet that I’ll be there.

The highlight of the set was when Andrew announced he was going to play a song that he said has “haunted me wherever I go.” Immediately, everyone knew the almost-ten-minute-ballad of “Konstantine” was coming. Hearing the emotional piano-ballad with the beautiful backdrop of the sun setting will forever be in my memory.

Setlist:

Hurricane
21 and Invicible
I Woke Up in a Car
Me and the Moon
Fall
Space
iF U C Jordan
Konstantine
Punk Rock Princess

Album Review: “Raditude” by Weezer

Weezer – “Raditude”

Raditude?  More like Bad-itude.

– Review by Michael Vivenzio

Grade:  C+

I tried guys, I really did. I tried as much as I did with Maladroit, as much as I did with the Red Album. I even tried as much as I did with Make Believe so you know I tried hard. However, no matter how hard I try, no matter how many chances I give them, I have given up on my former favorite band. Weezer; just tell me why? I just don’t understand how a band can fall so far. The Blue Album is my favorite album of all time, Pinkerton falls somewhere in my top 10 as well. Green Album, eh, it’s alright. But what happened to this band?

Sometime after Rivers mental collapse and Pinkerton’s commercial failure the band shifted gears. At first it was noticeable but it was bearable. “Buddy Holly” was replaced by “Hash-Pipe”, “Say It Ain’t So” was exchanged for “Island in the Sun”, “Holiday” for “Crab”. I was fine with that; you can’t expect greatness from a band every album but it was a worthy effort. Then came “Beverly Hills” and video’s with puppets and “Weeze” and fans from their “Tired of Sex” days were left confused, some even a little hurt. Honestly if it’s a joke, if these last four albums have just been a prank, a horrible sadistic way to get back at their fans for not accepting Pinkerton then i’ll accept it. Weezer deliberately making bad music now and depriving their fans for not supporting them when they put out their most personal album in some crazy way makes sense to me. A collaboration with Lil’ Wayne doesn’t.

Enough bashing Weezer, the reason you read these reviews is cause you want to know what the reviewer thinks of the album right? I thought it was okay. Take Weezer’s name off the album and i’ll even say I kind of liked it. It’s really catchy, the melodies get stuck in your head, it’s simple pop music. It’s just not a Weezer album. The first song on the album is its strong point. “If You’re Wondering If I Want You To (I Want You To)” is simple, it has a really catchy chorus, the lyrics aren’t too absurd, and it will get stuck in your head and you’ll be humming it for hours. It is probably their strongest single in years.

After the first track it starts to go down-hill. “I’m Your Daddy” features those ‘great’ Weezer lyric’s you’ve grown to expect from the band in recent years such as “I’d like to give you a demonstration of what it is I do, I’ll take you out to dinner at Palermo’s we’ll split a cheese fondu”. Wow, what a guy! “The Girl Got Hot” isn’t pulling any punches with the title, it’s about an ugly girl who changed her look and now she’s hot. Note to Weezer: Before writing your next album make sure you remove all copies of “She’s All That” from your studio to avoid writing another song like this.

“Tripping Down the Freeway” is pretty good. Not great Weezer but definitely Green Album worthy, I’ll take it. “Love is the Answer” – I have no words for this song, only letters. WTF? “Let it All Hang Out” again is alright, I can do without the product placement and the Jay-Z references (Nothing against you Hov, you da shit) but aside from that it’s a pretty good pop song. “In the Mall” is my guilty pleasure on this album; the song is completely ridiculous but it still rocks. I’d be lying through my teeth if I didn’t admit that the instant that guitar starts up on this song I don’t get a little pumped up.

“Put Me Back Together” is one of the better songs on the album but I can’t tell if I feel that way because I think the song is genuinely good or because it’s the song that forces “Can’t Stop Partying” to end. But it makes me realize the thing about the “new” Weezer that I don’t like. Weezer is meant to be a sad band; anyone who has ever listened to “Butterfly” will agree with that. All of Pinkerton and even some of the songs on Blue are pretty depressing. More importantly they weren’t trying to come off as something they weren’t, they were just Weezer songs. I feel like they are just trying too hard to reinvent themselves as a “cool” poppy party band when they were already in my opinion a cool poppy party band. Stop singing songs about Patron and taking girls on dates to Best Buy, I liked you a lot more when you sang about Pink Triangles and forbidden love affairs with underage Japanese girls. Get back to your roots.

Recommended listening:
Ozma – Rock and Roll Part Three. It’s the third best album Weezer ever wrote…they just didn’t write it. If you are yearning for the past as much as I am this album will get you through the day.