Who:  blink-182
Video:  After Midnight

Why you should watch:  blink-182 proves that you can have fun and mayhem anywhere, including a teenage psychiatric ward in their rather uplifting music video to kick off what could be a big time banner year for the pop-punk pioneers!

By Jackie Browne

What:  Cherrytree/Interscope Showcase
Where:  Canada

November 16th marks the date for the LMFAO concert featuring Far East Movement, Natalia Kills, Kay, Frankmusik, Colette Carr and Rye Rye. I wasn’t sure how this night would turn out because to me it seemed like a lot of artists and maybe it would turn for the worse, but I was proved wrong. After sitting down with Natalia Kills before the show and discussing the concert I got a better understanding of what was going on. Cherry Tree Records set up a unique artist line up, and made sure that the fans would have a good time.

The concert was set up into 3 sets; DJ Revue, Far East Movement, and LMFAO. I think that the way they set it up was awesome, like Natalia said, I don’t see why more concerts aren’t set up like this because it’s really the best way to go. The way I see it is; you get more for your money, you’re getting to see more artists live and get to cross them off your bucket list of people to see, and you’re having an awesome night out dancing and signing along with the artists on stage.  This tour has eight artists on the line up where as a regular concert has three or four lined up for you. All the artists on this line up also interacted with each other, they all had at least one duet with someone which I thought was cool to see. Some even had more then one duet, like Natalia who had a duet with Frankmusik for ‘No Champagne‘, ‘Like A G6’ with Far East Movement, and ‘Champagne Showers’ with LMFAO.

I really liked how they included the lights in the earlier sets, and Rye Rye used the strobe lights at the end of her set with Kay. It really pumped the crowd up for Far East Movement. When Far East Movement hit the stage the crowd went wild. These guys really know how to steal the audience’s attention and get them up and moving. FEM have the best energy I’ve seen to date, they jump and dance around the stage the whole time they are up. I saw them on the Lil Wayne tour and on this tour and both times I didn’t recall them taking any breaks to catch their breath. Every time I listen to ‘If I Was You’ I can see their dance moves and I feel like dancing down the street using their moves. It’s upbeat and makes you want to dance, so if you are into party music, and you’re looking for some music to add to your party play list check these guys out. These guys are very classy and love to dress classy. What you see is what you get, these guys are always dressed up. Whether they are on stage or getting on an airplane. They had a really good light show going on, a few strobe lights here and there and a lot of colourful lights streaming down on the stage and on the audience. I don’t recall anybody in the audience sitting down through their performance.

Now of course I’m sure everyone has heard of LMFAO, and if you haven’t you’ve got to be hiding under a rock or something. These guys are the biggest party duo in the world right now, their most famous single is ‘Party Rock Anthem’ and everyday people are shuffling to this song. LMFAO is known to party and have a good time, and that’s exactly what they did on stage in Ottawa, ON. They got the crowd wild and had a big party with thousands of their fans. They soaked the crowd with champagne, shuffled until they couldn’t shuffle anymore and just had a good time. Their lighting was awesome it was like being in a night club, everyone was drinking and having a good time with the guys. They performed all of their big singles including ‘I’m In Miami Trick’, “Champagne Showers’, ‘Party Rock Anthem’ etc. This was defiantly the party place to be in Ottawa on November 16th and if you missed it, you missed out on a huge party. It’s defiantly a concert worth seeing if they are coming your way.

By Hailey Sager

This past week, I had the privileged of travelling around the state of Florida to see all six of the Florida tour dates of Mayday Parade’s Noise Tour.  Some people thought what I was doing was absurd, but I had the time of my life. I decided to attend all six dates in Florida when I found out that You Me At Six were on the bill. Being a band from the United Kingdom, they do not come to the United States often. I knew I needed to get my You Me At Six fix in before they left the country again.

The last leg of the tour started in Gainesville, Florida, then it moved onto St. Petersburg, continuing in Tallahassee. Tallahassee was my favorite night of the six dates. My sister and I left Gainesville at 5:30 in the morning. She had to be at the venue at noon because she was the runner for the bands. I had a nice dinner with my best friends who go to school in Tallahassee. After we ate, they dropped me off at Floyd’s where the line was literally wrapped around the entire building. I cheated and met up with some friends towards the front of the line. I made it acceptable because I do not like to be front and center at the barricade to watch bands.

Once I was in the venue, I met up with my sister who had an all-access pass for me! It basically just let me take a breath of fresh air in between sets that I would not normally get with venues ‘Under-21 No Re-entry’ rule. After I got my pass from my sister I went up to the merchandise tables and bought a You Me At Six shirt from Dan, their merch guy. I made it known how upset I was that “Sinners Never Sleep” is still not available until January here in America. It later became all right during You Me At Six’s set when they announced they were bringing it to American in January and February with a headlining tour.

A new band to the music scene, The Make, kicked off every night of the Noise Tour. Every night I looked forward to watching their performance because of how original they are. If you are interested in an indie-pop version of Jason Mraz you should definitely listen to The Make.

Up next, were Orlando natives, There For Tomorrow. Even though they are from where I live, I had never seen them before this tour. They held their own in this crowd with just as many people singing along to their songs as Mayday Parade’s songs.

Finally, what I had been waiting for, You Me At Six were setting up. Having seen the show for the past two nights, I knew what to expect when the band started to play the introduction to “The Consequence” from their album “Hold Me Down.” Even knowing what to expect did not psych me out. I was gradually more excited to see them perform every night. “Safe to Hate Her,” also off of “Hold Me Down” was an awesome song that had even the members of the audience that were unfamiliar with the band dancing around. “This next song is a sing-a-long,” shouted front man, Josh Franceschi, leading into their new hit single, “Loverboy.” Although “Loverboy” and the next song, “Little Death” are both new songs off of “Sinners Never Sleep, this did not stop the crowd from knowing every word to the entire set. After their new songs, they paid tribute to older fans in the crowd like myself, singing “Liquid Confidence.” “Liquid Confidence” is another sing-a-long song in which, the band does not start unless they know the entire audience is going to be loud enough. They began to close out their set with my personal favorite, “Stay With Me.” I prefer it acoustic but the live version is so beautiful, it comes in as a close tie to the acoustic version in my book. They concluded their set with the crowd favorite, “Underdog.” The saddest part of my night was watching them dismantle their stage for We Are The In Crowd to start setting up.

We Are The In Crowd were up next as direct support to Mayday Parade. Having bought “Best Intentions” months ago, I had the greatest time singing along to all of their songs. Tay Jardine played every show in a leg cast after a mishap earlier on the tour. That did not stop her from dancing around the stage without missing a beat.

Tallahassee born and raised band, Mayday Parade were the happiest to be home. A lot of their friends and family were at the show to show the band their love and support. For me it was also nice seeing fellow extras and stars of Go Radio’s “Goodnight Moon” music video there to support Mayday Parade. My sister and I made sure to sing loudly at the top of our lungs to “Miserable At Best” and “Three Cheers For Five Years,” and many of their other songs in their set.

The highlight of my night was helping Josh Franceschi, of You Me At Six not enter the ladies restroom, instead pointing him in the direction of the men’s restroom. I had the opportunity to ask Dan Flint, You Me At Six’s drummer, what it was like to play to smaller crowds in America as opposed to sold out larger crowds all over Europe. He informed me that it was very refreshing to the band to come play shows where people have the chance to discover them as a band for the first time.

I am elated to have supported all the bands on The Noise Tour. I would do it again in a heartbeat. It was a great opportunity to have the chance to see You Me At Six in a change of scenery different from Warped Tour. I am looking forward to have the chance to see them again in a different scene when they headline their own tour in January.

By Alan Ho

It’s post-World Series of Poker and now you’re hooked on the money-making card game. But I’m not here to talk about that, I’m here to perhaps set the musical mood, perhaps get you and your card playing friends in the right mindset? There’s actually a few songs that wax poetic/philosophical on the game of poker:

1. O.A.R.: That Was a Crazy Game of Poker—This is hands down one of the best, IF not THE best song about the card game. It was also the jam band’s first stab at a big time hit, although it was one of their most earliest songs, created literally 5, 6 years before ESPN discovered the game. First verse tells the story:

“Ohh myyyy
20 throw down in my fist of rage
and the man to my left has folded down
well johnny doubled up with a royal flush
I had three jacks and a pair of nines
my mind is turning – just two shots more
there’s not much left to play
well then dude walks in black hat on top
What a mop, I’m lucky
It wasn’t a county cop
cause I’m just runnin out of time”

2. Lady Gaga: Poker Face—If you get past the poker game metaphors, it’s actually a song about having sex and somehow using poker metaphors to describe how you’d do it…with a poker face.

3. The Grateful Dead: Deal –You can’t have a list on poker songs without including this hit from the iconic rockers. One of their more understated pieces, the song has a piece of advice for all poker players:

“Watch each card and play it slow. Wait until that deal come round”

4. Kenny Rogers: The Gambler—Like O.A.R.’s first hit song, this Kenny Rogers vehicle is right down to the point: “Know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em”…sage advice.

5. Leonard Cohen: The Stranger—The prolific songwriter, better known for the oft-covered “Hallelujah” is also known for this dark diamond in the rough on the game of poker with it’s overt metaphors like “Ah you hate to see another tired man lay down his hand, like he was giving up the holy game of poker”

Who:  Evanescence w/opener The Pretty Reckless
Where:  The Palladium, Boston, MA
When: October 28, 2011

By Cara Demers

It’s apparent when an outstandingly stacked lineup has hit The Palladium Theatre, for a line stretching back and around the building, snaking through side-streets and into sidewalks, will start hours before the doors are even pinned open. Friday night, October 28th, was clearly no exception in Worcester, Massachusetts. The doors would open surprisingly on time, and immediately the undeniably huge crowd raced into the venue, both anxious and hyped up for a night of sold-out performances.

Some holding signs, others pushing their way to the front, a few restless fans began the kick-start chants a few minutes in to the scheduled start time. Though around 8:45, the lights dimmed and the music started. Although I wasn’t in the least bit familiar with the tour openers, Rival Sons was an obvious hit for the crowd. I found myself moving, regardless of the fact that I knew absolutely none of the words, and they were a standout band with a blues-meets-rock ‘n’ roll sound that was both unique and refreshing. As the four guys eased through their set, speaking to the crowd between songs in support of what was soon-to-come, it was obvious the newly acquired fans who, by the time they finished up, had made their way to the bands merch table at the other end of the room, a few with the bands self-titled in hand.

As expected, the overall excitement in the room was barely containable when a few minutes of set-up later, The Pretty Reckless’ Taylor Momsen took center stage. Her voice belting, the band (Ben Phillips on guitar, Mark Damon on bass, and drummer Jamie Perkins) opened with “Since You’re Gone,” and even within the first minute, Momsen’s obvious stage presence was crystal clear. Despite her young age, she looked as comfortable as a performer who might as well have been doing it for years, and her vocals were just as impressive in person as they are on the bands only release to date, “Light Me Up.”

My personal favorite of the night came only a few songs into the set, and although it doesn’t appear on the album, the heavy drums and bass in “Zombie” stirred the crowd’s energy level even higher.  The rest of the set list was obviously drawn from their album, though it was a pleasant surprise to hear Momsen suddenly shift gears to break into a cover of Audioslave’s “Stone” halfway through. Looking around, fans seemed to react as if the song were the bands own, applauding, whistling, and screaming just as they did for what followed (“Make Me Wanna Die.”) They closed the set with “Factory Girl,” during which Momsen made sure to move around the stage as rapidly and often enough to give the crowd their last opportunity to belt out the words as loud as they could alongside her. With one final rift on Phillips’ guitar, Momsen and her band left the crowd not only satisfied with an outstandingly impressive performance, but also as obviously eager as could be for Evanescence to take the stage.

And if one thing is certain, it’s that Amy Lee did anything but disappoint. Her voice is immediately like nothing any other female performer could upstage, and the band opened with “What You Want” off their latest self-titled release. Those who could sing along did, and others in the crowd were bouncing, moving, and pushing closer to the front to get as best a view they could. Lee transitioned right into another track off the album,  “Going Under,” which incorporates a heavy bass that, when heard live, was unbelievably dominant and captivating for anyone at any point in the venue.  While most of the set list was fixed around new material from their latest album, I was thrilled to hear a few that brought back a clear reminder of what this band has impressively managed to accomplish over the years.

One of the more impressive moments of the night was when a black grand piano was pushed to center stage, and the audience was treated to the core of Lee’s powerful voice. Eventually, she would accompany herself with the familiar piano into for the band’s 2006 hit, “Call Me When You’re Sober,” followed by possibly one of their biggest hits to-date, “Bring Me To Life.” These two songs were by far the ones that best showcased the band as a whole once the chorus’ began to hit. It’s one thing to hear an Evanescence blasting through your radio, though it’s another entirely to witness their music come together up-close and in person.

The band closed the show with a three-song encore of “Never Go Back,” “Your Star,” and “My Immortal.” Not only did the night fly by through a whirlwind of heavy rock ballads combined with their infamously prevailing harder rock sound, both old and new, but Evanescence, along with the opening bands, put on a highly entertaining show that left every bit of evidence that it was a night well-spent for the audience.