The music was loud, the sweat was pouring like rain, and the underage scenesters were plentiful at Toad’s Place as Say Anything took the stage.
The indie rockers hit the stage at 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, performing “Skinny Mean Man,” the first track off the band’s new album, “In Defense of the Genre.”
“Last night we played a sold-out show in Philadelphia, but I still got to say, tonight is the best show we’ve had all tour,” front-man Max Bemis told the crowd.
A crowd of more than 500 went wild, and the music kicked right back in.
The band continued on with its 16-song set, which included hits such as “Alive with the Glory of Love,” “Woe,” and its most popular song, “Wow I Can Get Sexual, Too.”
The group also strayed from its own material for a few minutes to perform a cover of the Smashing Pumpkins hit, “Stand Inside Your Love.”
While the band put on a phenomenal performance, there was one problem that kept running through my mind during the hour-and-a-half-long performance: I am getting way too old for this scene.
It was during my early years of high school that I adopted an interest in this music, and I’m starting to realize that high school is where it should stay.
Crowd surfing is quite possibly the most annoying thing to go down at a concert, and mosh pits lose their cool factor as soon as girls jump in.
That aside, Say Anything still put on a very entertaining performance. Leaving the stage around 10:45 p.m., the band quickly returned for the encore, only to discover that the power went out.
After five minutes of confusion, the band plugged back in and busted into the song “Belt,” from its first album, ” … Is a Real Boy.” The band then closed with its anti-conforming anthem, “Admit It!”
By 11 p.m., the crowd flooded out the front doors, all in awe at the almost flawless performance by one of the most original bands out in mainstream music.
Leave a Reply