The Menzingers are on the road celebrating the 10th anniversary of their breakout album On The Impossible Past and they’ve brought both Touché Amoré and Screaming Females along for the ride. The tour officially kicked off last week in Asbury Park at the House of Independents with what turned into a 4-night run. I say “officially” only because the band did attend Fest 20 down in Gainsville, FL the previous weekend. But moving on, 10 years of water under the bridge can seem like a blink of an eye to some and an eternity to others. For The Menzingers, 2012 not only had them playing in dingey basements, and DIY skateparks, but huge sports arenas (as openers for A Day To Remember) as well as large concert halls (as openers for Taking Back Sunday). To put it further into perspective, 2012 was the year Barack Obama won his second term as President of The United States, Vladimir Putin also won election to his second go-round as President of Russia, Hurricane Sandy struck the northeast, the massacre at Sandy Hook took place and Washington State became the first state in the union to legalize marijuana for personal recreational use. 2012 was also the year “Linsanity” took the NBA by storm, Whitney Houston passed away and in the pop music world, it was the likes of Katy Perry and Adele crushing all competition with #1 song after #1 song. But I’m going to go out on a limb and say that as far as the readers of Dying Scene are concerned, when it came to musical events, these paled in comparison to the release of On The Impossible Past by Philadelphia’s (by way of Scranton, PA) very own The Menzingers.
Released in February of 2012 on Epitaph Records, OTIP was a bit of a departure from 2010’s Chamberlain Waits. Where Chamberlain and their previous releases were straight-up punk, on Impossible Past, the band seemed to be making a concerted effort to be more melodic. This in turn allowed the stories in each of the songs to be more front and center. The move from punk to some kind of mix of melodic/pop punk isn’t always greeted by a band’s fan base, but in The Menzingers’s case, their loyal fans fell in love with the departure. The album, to this day, is often considered by many to be their finest work, this despite the subsequent release of some really stellar albums.
This brings me to last Thursday night in Asbury Park for the opening night of the tour. I wasn’t sure if they would be doing the album in chronological order or mixing it up and wasn’t totally sure which way I was leaning as far as a preference was concerned. Sometimes the track sequencing of an album doesn’t always translate into a proper flow for a live show but as I would soon find out, OTIP is one of those albums which works perfectly in a live setting from start to finish. Obviously, the opening lines of “I’ve been having a horrible time, pulling myself together” from opening track “Good Things” is a veritable microcosm of what many of us have been experiencing the last 10 years, and HOLY HELL, what a way to start off a set! And right from the get-go, we were off and running. Next up was of course “Burn After Writing” with its call and response line “Do my hands tell a story? Is it boring you?” Fuck no, thus far it was nothing even remotely close to boring.
Those who were familiar with the album already knew what was up next and by “those” I mean just about every sweaty body in The House. “Obituaries” started off with that spine-tingling chord strumming from Tom and before Eric and Joe could kick into their pounding rhythms, the entire room (or at least as far as I could see) was one large pulsing, jumping, screaming and slamming mosh pit.
The band appeared to be having an absolute blast on stage (even more so than usual). Tom was, as usual, a non-stop jumping machine, bouncing all over the stage mouthing each and every word (especially while Greg was singing lead into the mike). Following the album’s sequencing was working perfectly as everyone in the room knew what was next and was right on queue when each new song commenced. We did get a little back story from Greg regarding “Mexican Guitars” but all in all there really wasn’t all too much stage banter from the guys. In hindsight, this lack of Greg and Tom talking about the songs had me a little disappointed but then I thought that ehhhh, we can save that for the album’s 20th anniversary VH1 Behind The Music episode.
Upon conclusion of the album’s closer “Freedom Bridge” and its lines, “something happened on the way to hell”, Tom assured the crowd that things were far from over as the band kicked into “I Don’t Want To Be An Asshole Anymore” from Impossible Past‘s follow up album Rented World. With its chugging chords and anthemic chorus, the crowd again erupted into the frenzy that Menzinger fans have come to know and love about their shows. Needless to say, what remained was basically a best-of-the-rest set from the band. “House On Fire” to “Anna” to “In Remission” to “Lookers” to “Your Wild Years” and a close out of the evening with “After The Party”.
I for one was 100% satisfied with what the boys from Pennsylvania offered up to us. I was pretty much soaked in sweat from head to toe. I had a decent bruise on the side of my head from getting kicked in the noggin by a crowd surfer who I didn’t see coming as was too busy scoping the stage through my camera lens (something I know is risky in the front of a Menzingers pit, but sometimes you just need to do what you’ve got to do). And my throat was sore and raspy from shouting lyrics at the top of my lungs.
I would be remiss if I did not mention and/or share some words on the opening bands that are gracing the stage along with The Menzingers on this tour. First up was New Jersey’s own Screaming Females. I’ve seen this band numerous times over the years although not all that much in the last 5 or so. Anyway, I can honestly say that I have never seen them where I wasn’t completely blown away. Marissa Paternoster, in my humble opinion, is one of, if not the best, punk guitarists today. Her guitar chops are just completely unparalleled. I could listen and watch her shred on the guitar night in and night out and still experience something jaw-dropping each and every time.
With the unenviable task of not only having to follow The Screaming Females but also precede The Menzingers was Los Angeles’s own Touché Amoré. Familiar with the band in name only, I was not at all prepared for the onslaught and fury which singer Jeremy Bolm and the rest of the crew were about to unleash on myself and everyone in attendance. While their brand of post-hardcore punk isn’t something that I generally fancy, I have to admit that the energy, spirit and general ferocity of their set was eye-openingly inspiring.
All in all, I have to say that while “anniversary” tours can sometimes be nothing more than a cash grab, and oftentimes turn out to be somewhat cringe-worthy, this romp around the country by The Menzingers to celebrate On The impossible Past seems to be anything but. First and foremost, it helps that the band itself is at the top of their game. No, let me correct that, they are not at the top of their game at all, because they just seem to be getting better and better, they haven’t even reached the pinnacle just yet. Second, OTIP is such a stellar LP that paying homage to it, by playing it straight through is sheer pop-punk heaven. And lastly, the support acts of Screaming Females and Touché Amoré rock the fuck out of the crowd. They take things to a whole other level, to which even IF The Menzingers were inclined to mail it in, they could never because they’re being pushed so hard by these two openers.
This tour just started so by all means, check your local listings and if it’s passing through a town near you, do yourself a favor and go see the show,
The Menzingers slideshow
Screaming Females slideshow
Touché Amoré slideshow
