Punk veterans Against Me! are no strangers to the road. They have been touring like crazy for the last six weeks. In fact, their current tour will end with a stop at the end of this month at The Fest in Gainesville, Florida (where they will play Reinventing Axl Rose in its entirety for the lucky ducks who get to see that show!). However, if you have not seen them live, you are more than missing out. From reveling in the crowd to playing their hearts out on stage, frontwoman Laura Jane Grace and friends (James Bowman on guitar, Atom Willard on drums, and Inge Johansson on bass) leave everything on the stage. Additionally, when Laura Jane is on the mic, nothing is left unsung. They play a powerful show that would fill arenas as easily as it fills the smaller clubs where they seem to do their best work. There’s something to be said about a band like that, and I personally prefer the word stellar.
On Sunday, October 8, they rolled into the Pittsburgh area and set up shop at the legendary Mr. Smalls Theatre for what would assuredly be a night no one could forget. To start, the night’s two supporting acts, The Dirty Nil and Bleached, did precisely what they were supposed to do – provided killer sets in their own right that were the perfect catalyst to get the packed house ready for what was to come. Well, as ready as possible. Truthfully, there is no real way to be completely ready for the explosive, positive energy that Against Me! brings to the stage.
Starting up the night with “True Trans Soul Rebel,” Grace commanded the crowd’s attention, and everyone was more than willing to heed the command. Everywhere around, voices were heard singing every word back to Grace as she asked each of us in the crowd, “Who’s going to take you home tonight?” Moving seamlessly from one song to the next, Grace peppered in little tidbits of conversation between the songs, but never for long. I actually noted that I have never seen four people smile and laugh so much on stage as they do. In a world that can seem mighty bleak to a lot of people, concerts are a place of refuge and happiness. It was clear that those in the crowd weren’t the only ones who found that sense of joy and freedom to just simply exist inside the walls of Mr. Smalls. And, the giant inflatable ghost from the local Halloween store sure did a lot in showcasing the fun-loving nature of the band!
Instrumentally, the band is solid. On drums, Atom Willard is unmatched in terms of talent, and that was on full display. Inge Johansson absolutely mesmerized the crowd; from high kicks and broad smiles to head bangs and a shimmy or two on stage, his stage presence simply brought another layer to his skills on the strings. James Bowman’s guitar is a thing of beauty. Moreover, the way he masterfully played it that night only served to enhance that beauty. His confidence on stage was steady and quiet – he played with the air of someone you’d want on your zombie apocalypse team. He’s totally a master, he’s got this, now just come along for the ride; trust him. And, of course, Laura Jane Grace makes her guitars sing like no one I have ever seen. From electric to acoustic, it is clear she is most at home with her instrument in her hands. Vocally, she absolutely killed it that night, and I was shocked to find out later that she hadn’t been feeling well. As she danced around the stage, talked to the crowd, even reached out to touch a hand or two from the pit, Laura Jane Grace was the picture of what a frontwoman should be – strong, confident, humble enough to interact with those who admire her, at home on the stage, and a force to be reckoned with at her craft.
Taking the crowd on a massive twenty-eight song setlist, Against Me! visited their roots with tracks like “Reinventing Axl Rose” and “Those Anarcho Punks are Mysterious…” Fan favorites, “I Was a Teenage Anarchist,” “New Wave,” “Thrash Unreal” and “Unconditional Love” were firmly settled in next to some of their newer tracks from 2016’s Shapeshift With Me, “Delicate, Petite, and Other Things I’ll Never Be” and “Rebecca.” However, the night was brought to an amazing crescendo with a moving and high energy tribute to the late, great Tom Petty. Grace has been very vocal in her admiration and appreciation of Petty, and his legacy has left a huge mark on her musically. In fact, his loss wasn’t mourned, but rather celebrated, with an absolutely breathtaking version of “Runnin’ Down a Dream.” In effect, it rivaled any version that the Heartbreakers could come up with themselves, that’s for sure.
Even after killing it through twenty-two songs, Against Me! came back out for a whopping six-song encore. Speaking of encore, can we talk about Laura Jane Grace’s rendition of “The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton” by the Mountain Goats? Her version of that song is so beautifully done and so rich with her voice and the sound of her guitar, that it solidly rivals (some may say surpasses) the original. Check it out if you haven’t. The encore seemed to be one of the highlights of the night for some, as everyone gave their last little bit to Laura Jane and friends. An encore usually isn’t a time for the crowd to be more wiped out than the band, but as I witnessed, an Against Me! show isn’t like any other show around.
Sadly, at the end of the night, no one seemed to want to say goodbye. Unfortunately, the little bubble of joy and love that had surrounded us was slowly leaking, sure to pop with a burst no one wanted to face. Notably, the crowd shuffled out of the room slowly around me, as if to try to stretch the ends of that bubble as far as they could. Everyone had a smile on their face, high-fiving and hugging. Frequently, each person who passed by me seemed to want to carry on the magic. Conversations like, “That was killer!” “That’s the best I have ever seen them, and I’ve seen sixteen shows!” and “I can’t believe I finally got to see them live!” filled the air. The love and gratitude that the crowd had for the band and their performance was palpable. In short, I don’t think I’ll ever forget how that felt to share that space with them, as amazed and transfixed as everyone else around me, from start to finish.
For the most part, some of us wiped away tears while others wiped away sweat, and it was clear that Against Me! had made a mark on everyone that night. By and large, the mind-blowing performance was more than just a vehicle for a message of acceptance and resistance, love over evil, or trying to be up even when you’re down. Surely, the show that night meant to much to so many in the crowd. Further, some fans even expressed surprise at how much better the show was than they had expected it was going to be, simply because they’d never experienced them live before. Ultimately, like Laura Jane Grace says, “Sometimes the party takes you places that you didn’t really plan on going…”
All in all, if you haven’t had the chance to catch this tour, get yourselves out there and go!
Old punk or new, fan since the beginning or fan since last night, it doesn’t matter. On the whole, this show is one you do not want to miss.
TOUR DATES:
October 17, 2017 Norfolk, VA The NorVa
October 18, 2017 Charlotte, NC Neighborhood Theater
October 20, 2017 Nashville, TN Cannery Ballroom
October 21, 2017 Asheville, NC The Orange Peel
October 22, 2017 Atlanta, GA Center Stage Theater
October 24, 2017 Ft Lauderdale, FL Culture Room
October 25, 2017 Tampa, FL Big Pre-Fest
October 26, 2017 Tampa, FL Big Pre-Fest
October 28, 2017 Gainesville, FL The Fest
- True Trans Soul Rebel
- I Was A Teenage Anarchist
- ProVision L-3
- From Her Lips to God’s Ears (The Energizer)
- Miami
- New Wave
- Up the Cuts
- Jordan’s First Choice
- Walking Is Still Honest
- Haunting, Haunted, Haunts
- Delicate, Petite & Other Things I’ll Never Be
- Runnin’ Down a Dream (Tom Petty cover)
- Unconditional Love
- Those Anarcho Punks Are Mysterious…
- 333
- Rebecca
- Transgender Dysphoria Blues
- The Ocean
- Bamboo Bones
- Reinventing Axl Rose
- Black Me Out
- Thrash Unreal
Encore:
The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton (The Mountain Goats cover)
Two Coffins
Pints of Guinness Make You Strong
Baby, I’m an Anarchist!
Sink, Florida, Sink
We Laugh at Danger (And Break All the Rules)
