The Lawrence Arms once again played host at the War on X-Mas. Dying Scene was in the house for both nights at Metro (a third show was added for December 5th at Cobra Lounge). The band was joined by good friends in fellow Chicago bands, Smoking Popes, Royal Dog, and Still Alive. American Steel, out of Oakland, CA, also performed. It was a jolly good time!
Friday
Chicago’s The Lawrence Arms was founded a quarter of a century ago, but it remains as beloved as ever. The 10th Anniversary edition of the band’s annual holiday season event demonstrates it gets better each time. Brendan Kelly, Chris McCaughan, and Neil Hennessy were in top form as they ripped through an extensive set which included “You Are Here,” “Beautiful Things,” “Seventeener (17th and 37th),” “Metropole,” “The YMCA Down the Street From the Clinic,” “Chapter 13: The Hero Appears,” and “Like A Record Player.”
It was a terrific performance and surely filled fans in the jam-packed venue with much cheer.
Smoking Popes, another adored Chicago band, chose seasonally appropriate walk-on music for this event: the iconic “Linus and Lucy” instrumental by Vince Guaraldi Trio. The band members then kicked off their set, telling the crowd they did not want to “Simmer Down.” That’s good because things were just heating up. The blazing set further included “Let’s Hear It for Love,” “Rubella,” “Megan,” and “Gotta Know Right Now.” Smoking Popes also performed an enchanting rendition of “Pure Imagination.” Leslie Bricusse & Anthony Newley composed that wonderful confection specifically for the classic 1971 film Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. In addition, Scott Lucas of Local H joined the Smoking Popes on stage for “Off My Mind.”
The Brothers Caterer – Josh, Eli, & Matt, along with their “brother from another mother,” Mike Felumlee, once again delivered. This pattern is pretty routine, but their performances never are.
Royal Dog, completing the Chicago trifecta for this evening, gave a high-spirited performance to get the festivities started. Royal Dog, composed of Anthony, Micki, Joey, and Castle, went from a solo project started in 2018 and transformed into a full band in 2023 year. However, the group is certainly leaving a terrific imprint on fan’s senses. This was demonstrated by its high energy set, which included “Pickle,” “Crabbed,” “Worried, Sick,” and “The Deal.”
If you have yet to check the band out, I advise you to do so at your first opportunity. You can thank us later.
Saturday
The Lawrence Arms‘ Saturday night set was also decidedly non-Grinchy as far as length. It was also rollicking as the band tore through “The Devil’s Takin’ Names,” “Light Breathing (Me and Martha Plimpton in a Fancy Elevator),” “Lose Your Illusion 1,” “Alert the Audience!,” “Recovering the Opposable Thumb,” and “Are You There Margaret? It’s Me, God.”
The Lawrence Arms remains on the nice, albeit a bit cheeky, list. Lumps of coal need not be given to this trio.
American Steel, the only non-Chicago band this weekend, hails from Oakland, CA. Composed of Rory Henderson, Ryan Massey, John Peck, and Scott Healy, American Steel has been together since 1995. This event was special and brought back memories for the quartet, as Healy told me days after the show,
“The whole weekend was amazing. The Lawrence Arms are like our brothers. We did a 42-show tour where we shared a bus and probably knocked a few years off our lives. The weekend was similar. Many hugs, wives, and partners of bandmates getting to see each other after many years, dinners together, seeing so many old fans and friends. It’s why we still play shows.”
The band, presently on Fat Wreck Chords, gave a muscular performance, powering through a set that included “Emergency House Party,” “Dead and Gone,” “Shrapnel,” “Sons of Avarice,” “Mean Streak,” and “Maria.”
I very much look forward to documenting American Steel again, hopefully, sooner than later.
Still Alive played its second-to-last hometown show to kick off night 2 at Metro. After 15 years, the band’s final show is scheduled for Detroit.
The band’s blistering set included “Trials,” “I Quit,” “Make Melodies,” and “Ransom Note. Still Alive also performed a cover of The Killing Tree’s “Switchblade Architect.”
Post-show, Singer Dan Alfonsi reflected on what the weekend meant to the band,
“It was great sharing a stage with Lawrence Arms and American Steel. They were both great. All of us have been listening to Lawrence Arms and their family tree of bands since high school. We’d see a lot of those bands at Metro, so it was awesome being a part of the evening. Hearing them play “Nebraska” was a highlight for sure. Definitely a bucket list show for Still Alive, and it was an honor to play War on Xmas as one of our last shows.“
Alfonsi also told me why he and his bandmates, Mikey Cervenka, Dom Burdi, Ben Standage, and Bryan Schroth, are ready to close this chapter of their musical careers.
“We all play in other bands, and we’ll stay occupied with those. Dominick plays in Beat the Smart Kids, Mikey plays in Radar Waves …[Alfonsi plays in Flatfoot 56 and Cult Fiend]… Ben plays in Blood People and Whipped, and Bryan is a part of Chart Attack. We may or may not have another ska-related band in the works.“
Still Alive will be alive for two more shows: December 27, 2024 as headliner at Cobra Lounge in Chicago, and on December 28, 2024 at Detroit’s The Majestic for Black Christmas.
I have been watching and covering Still Alive for several years. Grateful to the band for the always good time.
The 10th Annual War on X-Mas was, again, a great early gift. Season’s greeting to all and to all, a thank you!
