The defining moment of the show was when they did not play “Radio.” Although some might consider it arrogant, even disrespectful not to play your most popular song, the decision actually worked for me. It added an element of surprise, it created anticipation for the next concert where there could now be actual suspense over whether they’d play it, and it stuck it to casual fans who only came to listen to hits. It felt like a genuine ‘punk’ move.
Another pleasant surprise was the fact that they played so many other old songs. I feared they would waste half the show slogging through This Addiction, their depressingly tame latest album. Fortunately, they only played the vivid title song and “Lead Poisoning,” a song that was accompanied by their (first ever?) trumpet solo. (Opening band Cursive provided the trumpet.) Some of the solid old tracks they revisited included “Sadie,” “97,” “Blue Carolina,” “Crawl,” “Blue in the Face,” and “Mr. Chainsaw,” which had been requested by every previous Trio audience. It was also satisfying to see them come back with three songs I’d been clamoring for the past three shows: “Mercy Me,” “Armageddon,” and “We’ve Had Enough.”
The lead singer on almost all of these songs was Dan Andriano, a reversal from the usual dominance of Matt Skiba. Andriano has a deeper, slower voice than Skiba, which often lent the songs greater gravitas. Next show, I’ll be ready to return to Skiba, to power through “Private Eye,” “Stupid Kid,” “This Could Be Love,” and a full speed “Armageddon,” but on this night, Andriano was a nice change of pace. He didn’t force mosh pits when none were needed, he didn’t attempt watered-down Rise Against, he just let hardcore fans (like me) sway and mouth the words.
Grade:A-
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