Dashboard Confessional @ Festival Pier with Taking Back Sunday, The Starting Line, Saosin and The Early November.
Text by McCall Cox. Images by Erin Marhefka.
The Taste of Chaos tour passed through Philadelphia last week, bringing Dashboard Confessional, Taking Back Sunday, The Starting Line, Saosin and The Early November to Festival Pier.
The Early November kicked off the night of music. Hailing from New Jersey, the five-piece rock band is made up of Arthur Enders on vocals, Sergio Anello on bass guitar, Jeff Kummer on drums, Joseph Marro on guitar and Bill Lugg on guitar as well. The Early November played an energetic set to an excited audience, performing songs such as “Tell Me Why,” “Narrow Mouth” and “I Want To Hear You Sad.”
Saosin rolled on stage next, ready to play an energetic set filled with tracks both old and new. The rock band featured Anthony Green on vocals once again, as well as Beau Burchell and Phil Sgrosso on guitar, Chris Sorenson on bass and Alex Rodriguez on drums. The band had been relatively inactive for about four years, from 2010 until 2014, until Green rejoined the band and they recently released the album, Along The Shadow, this past May.
Green was very interactive with the crowd, passing the microphone to an audience member to sing along and even crowdsurfing the length of the entire audience at the conclusion of the band’s set.
“We’re so grateful to be here on this tour. It’s fucking awesome,” Green said. “I’ve got to say, this is the best fucking show of the tour so far. I know I’m a little bit biased but for me, it’s the truth.”
Saosin also performed songs such as “Translating the Name,” “Racing Toward a Red Light,” and “3rd Measurement in C.”
“Thanks for being so nice to us today. We’re Saosin. We’re so happy to be able to play music for you again.”
The Starting Line was welcomed to the stage with cheers of support for the local act. The Starting Line, which features Kenny Vasoli on vocals and bass, Matt Watts on guitar, Mike Golla on guitar, Tom Gryskiewicz on drums and Brian Schmutz on keyboard, had announced its hiatus in 2008. Though the band continued to tour occasionally, they announced their return to music with the EP titled Anyways, which was released December of 2015.
As the band was beginning the first track of their set, “Up & Go,” Vasoli stopped the song.
“Hang on, hang on. Somebody’s in the wrong tuning,” he said, adding jokingly, “That’s what happens when you take seven years off.”
Vasoli then thanked the crowd, mentioning that it was the largest audience The Starting Line has played for.
“We put out a little seven inch this year. I hope you all check it out,” Vasoli later said, referring to the Anyways EP.
“I just really want to say thank you to everyone who has been listening to us since 2001. I hope the new stuff lives up,” he continued before performing the track “Anyways.”
“This is amazing. I don’t really have enough time to talk about it but this means so much,” Vasoli added between songs.
The Starting Line also played tracks such as “Leaving,” “Are You Alone,” and “Almost There, Going Nowhere.”
Taking Back Sunday rocked the stage next as the sun began to set, appearing on stage to the opening song from “The Lion King.” The alt-rock group features Adam Lazzara on vocals, John Nolan on guitar and vocals, Eddie Reyes on guitar, Shaun Cooper on bass and Mark O’Connell on drums.
“Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen,” Lazzara said after the band performed a few songs. “We’re called Taking Back Sunday. It’s a pleasure to be here this evening. Are you enjoying yourself?”
Lazzara continued to engage the audience, recounting a show the band had performed in Philadelphia years ago during which the audience had overrun the barricade, causing the show to be shut down.
“So anyways, all that to say, I fucking love it here,” the singer concluded the story.
“Now ladies and gentlemen, I understand that most of you made it out here for nostalgic purposes,” Lazzara later said, eliciting cheers of agreement from the audience.
“But you know what that means—we’re in this together. I was there when you skipped your freshman high school classes. I was there when you went to that college. I’m 6’2” and I’m standing right here in front of you. And I’ve learned some things and I want to share them with you. And that means a new song.”
Lazzara interacted with the audience, bantering with the band as well as the audience and also wishing a bride congratulations, saying, “It’s a world of hurt but it’s worth it.” The frontman also roused the crowd to show support for the other bands performing that evening.
Taking Back Sunday also performed another new, unreleased track.
“We’re going to play a new song and I know what you’re thinking—‘I didn’t come out tonight to hear new songs, how selfish of you Taking Back Sunday.’ But the reason we want to play this new song is because it’s that damn good,” Lazzara said of the new song, “Tidal Wave.”
Taking Back Sunday also performed songs such as “You’re So Last Summer,” “Flicker Fade,” and “Liar (It Takes One To Know One).”
Dashboard Confessional wrapped up the night of rock, taking the stage just before 9:30 p.m.
Dashboard Confessional is comprised of Chris Carrabba on vocals and guitar, Scott Schoenbeck on bass, John Lefler on guitar and Mike Marsh on drums.
Dashboard Confessional performed many songs from early albums, Carrabba’s voice matched by deafening support from the audience as the crowd sang along.
“We’ve all grown up together I think,”Carrabba said.“We’ve been growing up together and this song kind of feels a bit like that. It’s something that I think we have a different point of view on a certain thing now and it’s simple—if you love somebody, you’ve got a real simple duty to allow them to be who they are and who they’re going to become. And to do that, you just have to agree, ‘I’m going to be the safe place for you,’ and that’s it. That’s what this song is about.”
They then played a new song, “Heart Beat Here.”
After performing “Stolen,” the band exited the stage.
Dashboard Confessional returned for an encore of “Hands Down,” which Carrabba prefaced by saying, “This song is about the best day I ever had in my whole life.”
Dashboard Confessional’s setlist also consisted of “Vindicated,” a brief cover of Coldplay’s “Fix You,” “Screaming Infidelities” and “The Best Deceptions.”
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