Alexisonfire, Anti-Flag, Saosin – (December 6th, 2007)

Due to an interview that ran a little late and some absolutely horrible planning at the coat check area, I walked into the Shaw Conference Centre’s main hall as Saosin were just starting their final song of the night. That, of course, meant I had missed both Saosin and The Bled‘s set. It failed to really upset me though; I’m sure The Bled would have played the same set they did the two times I saw them in May and missing the Saosin is far from heartbreaking.

So despite two bands having already played, the first band I actually got to see that night was the main reason I had even come to the show in the first place: Pittsburgh’s Anti-Flag. The political punk band came on stage after a pre-recorded voice finished a political rant that never got my attention and ripped into their show. They maintained their energized persona the entire set and remained closely clued to material from For Blood & Empire including I’d Tell You But…, The Press Corpse, Project For A New American Century, This Is The End (For You My Friend), War Sucks Let’s Party and a surprising addition of One Trillion Dollars in which all the lighters and cell phones were pulled out. The few times they did dive deeper into their catalogue was to pull out fan favorites like Turncoat, Die For Your Government, Underground Network (during which #2 joyfully dived into the crowd and went crowd surfing) andFuck Police Brutality. They completely stayed away from their recent EP release A Benefit For Victims of Violent Crime but did play one new song from their forthcoming release, The Bright Lights of America. To my surprise, the band kept the banter to a minimum and instead tried to fit as many songs as possible during their forty five minute slot. The only time they really dove into the lengthy conversations was a prelude to Project For A New American Century and when they encouraged the crowd to separate and start into a giant circle pit for Fuck Police Brutality.

Anti-Flag got the crowd riled up and energized as they put everything they had into the set making it a worthwhile evening for people who went out specifically to see them. However, many of the kids there were to there to see Ontario’s rising screamo stars Alexisonfire. Now, for me, Alexisonfire has always been an interesting band. I’ve never been a huge fan, but I’ve still managed to see them live a handful of times and despite my trepidations towards them, they always impressed me. Add the fact that I somewhat enjoyed Crisis – much more than the band’s previous efforts – and I was slightly excited to see the band even though it’s not a band I would normally head out of my way to see.

I guess it was that anticipation that made Alexisonfire‘s set somewhat disappointing. It’s not that they failed to excite the crowd as they played through Boiled Frogs, This Could Be Anywhere In The World, Rough Hands, .44 Caliber Love Letter and Drunks, Lovers, Sinners and Saints among others; it’s just that they failed to go above and beyond that. Yes, they had energy. Yes, they sounded good. Yes, they had a strong enough mix of harder and softer songs; and yes, they put on a good show overall. But they were unable to captivate me and completely grasp my attention like they normally did. Their persona wasn’t as present as previous live sets and while the lighting effects – the simple white backdrop showered with lights and strobe lights – continually grabbed my eye; I couldn’t help but feel as if the show was missing a memorable quality. Not a bad show by any means; but not one I’ll look back and fantasize about either.