Going In Blind
Most of shows I go to accompanied by the breadth of music I catch tend to never lend to a full surprise. I always know a minimum of one band on a bill. Rarely is it where I haven’t the slightest clue on a show. However, in the case of Touché Amore and tour bill of Jerome’s Dream and Dangers, I went in completely unfamiliar. It was exciting watching bands I had no idea what to expect from beginning to end with a passionate crowd bolstering the energy in the room.
Opening up, the passion belonged to the guys of Dangers on stage. This has to be one of the most energetic opening bands I’ve watched. Al Brown, on vocals, was everywhere he could go with that microphone. If someone was already belting the lyrics back to them, he threw a microphone in front to be further including them in the performance.
His way of working the stage reminds me a lot of Matt Caughthran, of the Bronx, and our local Brandon Kellum, of American Standards. The music style of the band was in a similar vein, of those respective bands’ hardcore punk rock. I have to say Dangers were fantastic and crazy they were just the opener.
Then it was the very unorthodox approach in the way Jerome’s Dream performed. I say unorthodox because they setup with only the drummer facing out toward the crowd. The rest of the band faced away, with a microphone setup toward the drummer. I have never seen a band perform that way.
Their music is a little slower than Dangers with purposeful off key instrumentals, joined by a hardcore style singing in the vocals. The crowd was the calmest of the night for them, which probably went hand in hand with their slower pace. I was more in observation mode for Jerome’s Dream set, entertained and interest piqued by their choice of how they play.
Last was another in your face and excellent band with Touché Amore. Jeremy Bolm, like Al earlier, is just on every front edge of that stage sharing the performance experience with everyone wanting the microphone. Plus, if I thought the crowd was excited during Dangers, Touché Amore matched that intensity and somehow found a way to ratchet it up a couple notches.
Shooting shots from the crowd managed a small chipped tooth of my own amongst the concentrated enthusiasm. A nearby fan raised his arms in excitement singing, meanwhile catching my camera arm up into my face in the process. Despite the pain that would fade, this band continued to amaze me the entirety of the set. Going in blind on these guys only made the surprise of Touché Amore further impactful. I look forward to the next opportunity to watch them again.
