Ten years ago I received a package in the mail from the fine folks at Asian Man Records. A handful of albums that I paid $8 each for, postage paid. Included was Goddamnit by Alkaline Trio. The album quickly became a permanent fixture in my boom box. Over and over again, from “Cringe” to “Sorry About That” a half dozen times a day while I did my homework. This went on for months.
When I saw they were playing The Glass House in support of their new album, This Addiction, a rush of nostalgia came over me and figured it’d be pretty cool to get photos of one of my favorite bands from my high school days. Their subject matter hasn’t changed much since Goddamnit with girls, drugs and being pissed at cops being in the forefront of their lyrics.
The first time I saw Alkaline Trio was at Chain Reaction, which was a show that caused me to wear my bruises like medals of honor the next day at school. But the crowd at The Glass House was not what I was expecting. Sure there was a mosh pit but a majority of the crowd seemed to be more mellow and older, my age, and perhaps a good handful of them were also at that Chain Reaction show almost a decade ago. Most of the crowd seemed to be there to watch three guys tear sh*t up on stage and responded with thunderous applause at the end of each song.
Alkaline Trio started the show with “This Addiction” and continued with more material from their more recent Vagrant releases. Then they played “F*ck You Aurora” and “Goodbye Forever” back-to-back and reminded me why I use to love this band so much and why I still pull them up on my iPod from time to time. Having a packed house screaming, “Your voice like the sound of sirens,” during “Nose Over Tail” was awesome. Hearing “’97” live for the first time was like being 16 all over again.
For the encore all three members switched up their usual instrument of choice. Continuing this nostalgic ride Matt Skiba took over the drums for “I’m Fine Without You” and a brand new song. Dan Adriano played guitar while Derek Grant played bass and sang.
In the end Alkaline Trio showed they’re still a great band to see live. The music was tight. Skiba sang and played with the same conviction as he did the first time I saw him. I’m sure Adriano’s a little tired of being referred to as “punk’s best kept secret” but it’s still a fitting label for his underrated singing and song writing. Perhaps the only thing that would have made the show better was if it was at The Metro in Chicago.
Good stuff Stephen. I often wonder if this ICM thing is just a front so we can see bands we like. The nostalgic ones are especially cool. Looking forward to Pavement this summer