Concert Review: Circa Survive (Union Transfer 12/14/14)

Walking into Philly’s Union Transfer a couple of weeks ago, I had quite a few high expectations for headliner and local legend Circa Survive, as well as openers Pianos Become the Teeth, and Title Fight. I expected no-flaws, tight bands that were into the touring groove; but after seeing two (amazing in their own rights) polished pop shows over the summer, I needed a raw, real rock show. I expected the hometown fans to be passionate. I expected a crazy time. And I eventually did get it.

Pianos Become the Teeth

     Call us ill-prepared, but the group I attended the show with didn’t even know that the Baltimore-based screamo group would be performing. Never having known the band existed before, as well as not being a screamo fan, I don’t exactly poses the credibility to comment on them musically. I can say, however, that they performed quite well, technically proficient but with a lot of feeling. The five guys were all energetic, moving around enthusiastically while doing their best to engage the audience. However, their set suffered from “unknown-band syndrome”, which dampened the energy. And in fairness to Pianos Become the Teeth, the Circa Survive audience isn’t a strictly scream-based one at that.

Title Fight

More of the crowd knew the music the Kingston-based punk quartet. The serious moshing and crowd sing-alongs began, and had the heads bopping of all the Circa-fans who had barely heard of the group before (I’m a guilty member of that party). Like Pianos, Title Fight pulled off a tight show that ran with no serious musical flaws, at least that I could identify. It was a lot of fun seeing bassist and main vocalist Ned Russin give it everything that he had, enthusiastically swinging the neck of his bass around. The music was played passionately, resonating with the fans crowding the barrier that knew every word. And because they didn’t delve into overly similar musical territory as Circa, they were the perfect opening act.

Circa Survive

It was clear from the second the lights dimmed for Circa that this was the band everyone came to see. The band walked on stage to the brooding piano intro to “Through the Desert Alone”. The drums entered as energetic frontman Anthony Green walked right onto the security barrier, inviting everyone to rush forward. And for the next 80 minutes, it was just one high-energy performance after another.

The band performed extremely well, with guitarists Brandon Eckstrom and Colin Frangicetto trading off with impressive interplay throughout the set. Drummer Steve Clifford perfectly executed his signature polyrhythmic-feeling beats, never losing his timing even amidst the most feedback-laden insanity. And bassist Nick Beard was the perfect vocal foil for Green, providing low-end both instrumentally and vocally.

Anthony Green is well-known for his on-stage antics, which vary from what seem like general stream-of-consciousness rants to jumping around like a madman while singing. Between songs, his banter with the crowd and his band-mates kept the show’s energy intact, while not feeling stale at all. To give you a better example, I present to you:

A List of Things Anthony Green Did at the Circa Survive Show

• Nearly caused a riot ten seconds into the show
• Chastised guitarist Brandon Eckstrom for eating snacks in between songs (which caused the band to restart at least one song)
• Helped Brandon Eckstrom finish his snacks
• Later found a broom to clean up the onstage mess of their snacking
• Goaded the audience to throw their clothes at him
• Wiped his sweat on the articles of clothing thrown at him, before tossing them back into the crowd
• Made a college student eat a Twix bar out of his hands
• Led the band in a groovy jam in homage to mysterious stagehand Ethan Merritt

Oh and, throughout all of the madness, Green sounded just awesome vocally. If there were any bad notes, everyone was too involved in the pure energy of the show to notice.

Somewhat surprisingly, the set didn’t feature too much from the groups current album, Descensus. More than half the setlist contained numbers from the group’s three earlier albums, though I didn’t hear a single complaint around me about this.

Overall, Circa Survive walked into Union Transfer and ended their tour by rocking the shit out of the hundreds of fans that packed the venue.

Circa Survive Setlist:

• Through the Desert Alone
• Strange Terrain
• Sharp Practice
• Semi-Constructive Criticism
• Schema
• Glass Arrows
• Fever Dreams
• The Greatest Lie
• Suitcase
• Kicking Your Crosses Down
• In Fear and Faith
• Stop the Fuckin’ Car
• Only the Sun
• Frozen Creek
• The Difference Between Medicine and Poison Is in the Dose
• Child of the Desert
• Get Out

 (Photo credits: Jared Sokoloff , Sara Lambert, & Kim Ilkowski. We tried our best, we really did.)