Hey J-14-ers!
Interns Nicole and Steph here! Last Wednesday, we had the opportunity to see the awesome indie rock band Say Anything in concert at the Highline Ballroom in New York City and we're so excited to dish all the details for you guys! Though neither of us were too familiar with the band, as two girls with a huge appreciation for all types of music genres, Say Anything definitely gained two fans by the end of the show!
The intimate venue was perfect for the band's off-beat vibe. The 19-song set (wow, these guys must have been beat afterwards with the way they were running around the stage!) was one of the most energetic shows that we have ever seen, that had just about everybody in the room head-bobbing, body-jumping, and fist-pumping! They rocked New York with songs from their past two records and a bunch of songs from their new self-titled album which dropped November 3.
Opening with a new (and still relatively unfamiliar song to the fans), "Fed to Death," it wasn't until the second song, when the audience was greeted with the sound of a phone ringing that the crowd went absolutely crazy (as did Nicole, since she knew the words to this song)! "Wow, I Can...," is a high energetic song with a catchy beat that just about everyone in the audience was singing (and dancing!) along to and that we will likely have stuck in our heads all week! (Steph's been jamming to this song nonstop ever since the concert! It's such a fun song to rock out and dance to!)
Lead singer Max Bemis's stage presence, humor, and charisma carried the show along smoothly. When an audience member shouted, "I love you!" Max was on his feet with a remark. "I love everyone," he said with pause, "I hate everyone," he countered, making the crowds go wild, before launching the band in to the next song, the first single off their new album. "Hate Everyone," left the crowd in a frenzy as enthusiastic fans (guys and girls alike!) crowd surfed to the stage to rock out with the band before launching off in to a sea of entranced fans. Too funny! One guy even lost his shoe as he made his way through the crowd to the stage! No worries though, Max flung the shoe back out to the crowd so that it was returned to its owner! (We remained safely away from the stage! ;))
Eisley opened up the show and set the energy for Say Anything with a set of indie, rock, and pop songs. The band consists of four siblings (and a cousin!) who definitely know how to rock! Sherri Dupree, rhythm guitar and vocals, is married to Max, the lead singer of Say Anything and they were brought out during each other's band's set, which was so cute! Sherri harmonized with Max during Say Anything's new song 'Cemetery,' which was one of Nicole's favorite songs in the set. It was so sweet! Lead singer and keyboardist, Stacy DuPree, reminded me of Paramore's Haley Williams -- if you like Paramore, definitely give them a listen!
Overall, the concert was so much fun! We've never been to a concert with so much energy before -- where you could tell the crowd was feeling every single word the singer put out there. They definitely know how to engage the crowd with fun banter and interaction between the songs. This band knows how to rock and it's very clear that they love doing it. After the concert, the first thing we did was go home and buy their music off of iTunes!
Check out their official page at: SayAnythingMusic.com!
<3 Your J-14 Interns,
Nicole & Steph
And check out this pic from the show we took:
