Rise Against has always had a special place in my heart. Upon first listen of The Unraveling, I started to get into more and more melodic harcore acts of the nineties, which eventually led me to Ke Dynamite, Good Riddance, etc. After their record deal with Geffen, I felt a little pissed off, but I remained faithful that they would put out another stellar album. I was wrong. It wasn't horrible, it just seemed like the band was trying to get big with this record. Still, I decided I would check them out to see if the rumors of their live show taking a toll was true.

I arrived only 15 minutes late and surprisingly missed most of the Loved Ones set. I really wanted to see "100k" live, which angered me to no limit. I proceeded to cry like a little girl. Surprisingly, the kids weren't that into their brand of Bouncing Souls-inspired punk rock. Judging from their last two songs, they were good.

Next was Comback Kid, and everyone in the club was aware that they were in for a treat. For those that are not well acquainted with the band, they are a hardcore act that somehow reminds me of Good Riddance, which is always a good thing. I only recongnized two of their songs: "Talk Is Cheap" and the closer "Wake The Dead." The latter, with its anthemic lyrics, ended their set off on a high note.

Next was From Autumn To Ashes. I had no desire in seeing them and was about to just take a 30 minute ciggerette break, but decided to watch for shits and giggles. This band is the epitome of fashioncore. They seem like all they care about is looking good under the lights, which they failed at. They started it off with "Miligram Smile," which is one of their few tolerable songs. After that, all went to shit. They played a bunch of crap off their upcomming album that failed to even get their own fans moving. The only other notable song was "Take Her To The Record Store." After, they finished off with "The After Dinner Payback" and I was relieved that they ended my misery pretty quick.

Now was time for Rise Against. Although I was skeptical, from the opening chords of "Life Less Frightening" I was into it. Also, I was really glad that they didn't save "Swing Life Away" for the encore. My only two complaints are that: (1) They need to play better songs from their new record, such as "Rumors Of My Demise" and "Tip The Scales," and (2) they need to start playing "Alive And Well" live again. Also, their new guitarist has almost no stage presence. All this in mind, RA put on one hell of a show.

Set list (from newest to oldest):

• "My Life Inside Your Heart"
• "Great Awakening"
• "Black Masks And Gasoline"
• "Heaven Knows" (fake closer...I think)
• "Dead Ringer"
• "Like The Angel"
• "Voices Off Camera"
• "Blood, Red, White and Blue"
• "Broken English"
• "The First Drop"
• "Life Less Frightning" (opener)
• "Paper Wings"
• "Blood To Bleed"
• "Anywhere But Here"
• "Give It All"
• "Swing Life Away"

Encore:

• "State Of the Union"
• "1000 Good Intentions"
• "To Them These Streets Belong"

All in all, it was a very good night and it reminded me why I love punk rock so much. The sense of unity at the show was awe-inspiring, considering how much of a diverse crowd it was. Good times were had by all.

P.S. Good Riddance and/or Propaghandi come to Norfolk / VA Beach right away!