By: Mike Minehart
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Paul of Throw the Fight - Photo by Mike Minehart
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Saturday night's main event at First Avenue featured seven (count 'em) bands all playing for a charity event to benefit cystic fibrosis research: Absent I, Throw the Fight, White Light Riot, Drift Effect, Fragile, Down And Above, and Perfect Enemy. It seemed inevitable that even though my main reason for attending the show was to see White Light Riot, I would probably encounter at least one new band that would catch my ear along with a few memorable pictures.
The first band up was Absent I, a standard four-piece with a lead guitarist who played an acoustic guitar instead of an electric. They also heavily featured programmed drumbeats and electric-sounding riffs, which worked at times, but tended to come off as having a bit too much programming versus live music. The gaudy computer that ran the music sequencing drew almost as much attention from me as did their frontman and his very large beard. Still, I felt that Absent I put on a decent set, as it's usually fairly hard to get the crowd going as the opening band anyway.
The next band up was the one that caught my ear that night: Throw the Fight. Veteran of a few Warped Tours already, this quintet featured dual, alternating lead guitarists. What really impressed me about these guys was not only their crazily high-energy stage presence, but also the fact that they played a tight and clean set. Most local bands that I've known in the punk/hardcore vein tend to be sloppy and discombobulated, but Throw the Fight proved that they've got a good handle on their style of thrash-punk laced with some really fast solos and riff work. They definitely used the massive First Avenue stage to their advantage, as both of the guitarists and the bassist played wirelessly and were constantly moving all over the stage around their frontman, whose hair and wild moves on stage reminded me of Zach de la Rocha. The bassist even broke his guitar strap at one point and had to duct tape the end of it onto his bass after being forced to play half a song straddling a ledge to keep his bass upright.
Throw the Fight made a great warm-up to get the crowd ready for the third band of the night, the aforementioned White Light Riot. The floor began to swell with people as White Light Riot set up their gear, and the Main Room of First Avenue seemed full of anticipation. When the big screen went up and the first drumbeats and guitar riffs kicked in, that anticipation was fulfilled. Sporting their Saturday night best apparel, White Light Riot ripped through a lively set of some favorites from their debut EP ("Stars" and "Out Of Sight") along with some new songs that might be appearing on their next record sometime in the near future ("Psychedelic," "In Company"). The crowd was definitely into their performance, as the Main Room floor danced along to the tunes. White Light Riot has certainly earned their status as a Twin Cities buzz band, so it only seems appropriate that they're playing the Buzz Band Showcase for Wild River Festival at Roy Wilkins Auditorium on September 9th. The showcase also features local favorites This World Fair, The Alarmists, and The Hopefuls, among others.
My camera was full by the time White Light Riot had finished, so I headed out early into Drift Effect's set. In the end, I was pleased with the night's endeavors. One of the main reasons for attending large local shows is that there is always an opportunity to be exposed to new, interesting music that one would not have heard otherwise; that reason continues to be true for me, as Throw the Fight impressed me enough that I want to see them again soon.
Location Info:
First Avenue
Artist Info: Absent I, Throw the Fight, White Light Riot
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