This is when I grabbed my first drink, mixed strong. I also bumped into a friend and a few of his friends. We chatted about the music and how things were. This led to some goofy fun as we moved down towards the stage for the next band. Around this time another friend arrived and hung around with us enjoying the evening.
Stealing Kisses finished up and Semblance of a Soul took the stage. This was a band I was absolutely dreading. I saw them once before, way back in January of 2007 when they opened for Meliah Rage. Simply put, they were terrible. They were so bad that I remember saying that if they were your first local experience, it may be enough to swear you off further trips. Fortunately, time has been at least a little bit kind to the band. They were not nearly as bad as they were the first time I saw them. Of course, that doesn't say much.
The music was nothing special, typified by bland songwriting. However, they did play well and kept the energy up. They even brought their own cheerleaders, who were doing their thing in the pit. Even with sub par music, it is always good to see people excited about music (of course, it would be preferable that it be good music, but that is a topic that can be endlessly debated and never won).
Section 18 was up next. Earlier in the night I spoke with frontman Mikey P. who told me to expect a heavier sound tonight, jokingly telling me it was just for me. You see, one of the things I had written about them in the past concerned a wish that they were a bit heavier. It wasn't a criticism, just an observation based on my tastes. The reason for their new found heaviness? They were playing with their returning rhythm guitarist who has been playing with a hardcore act, he brought some of that back with him and the band was affected by it. This is still Section 18 and the music is still very accessible, it just has a heavier feel. I like it.
Their performance featured a cover of Killswitch Engage's cover of Dio's "Holy Diver," which sounded excellent. Also, partway through their final song, they broke into a bit of Pantera's "Walk." That really got the crowd cheering. Overall, Section 18 delivered a solid performance. Strong guitars, excellent drums, and Mikey P. sounded excellent.
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