Keep Calm and Carry On: Show Recap: Zumiez Couch Tour (Bayside, Hawthorne Heights) at Monmouth Mall (Eatontown, New Jersey)

On June 26th, 2010, the Zumiez Couch Tour brought it's tenth installment to the parking lot of the Monmouth Mall. The site was what my friend referred to as "a mini Warped Tour," which was perfect for the summer. There were giveaways, merch stands, a skate ramp featuring the RVCA (pronounced roo-ka, by the way) Skate team and even a dreadlocked rastafarian MC. But the main reason I was there was for the two bands that took the Skull Candy stage, Hawthorne Heights and Bayside.

Hawthorne Heights took the stage first, a fact that I still can't believe. Three years ago, this band wouldn't even be asked to come play a free show because everyone knows they'd already be headlining Warped Tour. But three years ago seems like an eternity for the warriors of HH. They lost a battle for their independence with their record label, and worst of all, they lost one of their own. Since Casey Calvert's tragic death, Hawthorne has released two albums, and while none of them have quite measured up to the game-changing (for better or worse) The Silence in Black and White, that's not to say that they aren't still a band worthy of praise. The band moved quickly through an energetic set, playing a few songs from their latest release Skeletons and mixing them flawlessly with such scene classics as "Saying Sorry." About 20 minutes into their half-hour set, the small(ish) crowd seemed to be growing antsy, and for good reason. For one, it was easy to see that most of the crowd was there for Bayside. But most importantly, the band hadn't played the emo kids' national anthem, "Ohio is for Lovers." The band did not disappoint the crowd, playing their unexpected smash-hit second to last, and following it up with the always welcomed "Niki FM." Though I will admit to not being the biggest HH fan, I must say there were some things that really intrigued me about their set. For one, I think it's great that they understand how much songs like "Ohio" or "Niki FM" are to their fans, and they aren't too proud to let their fans have it (they even extended the breakdown of "Niki FM" to let the moshers have some more fun). But what impressed me most was the performance of guitarist and Casey Calvert's screaming replacement for the live shows, Micah Carli. He was all over the stage and gave a heartfelt performance, and his screams were quite impressive. While the tragic fall of Hawthorne Heights is well-documented, the band truly show that no matter how badly you fall apart, you can always build yourself back up.

After a freestyle session and gift card giveaway from the dreadlocked MC, the moment most of the crowd had waited for had arrived, and Bayside took the stage. The band decided to take a break from writing their new record (which they said would be released sometime next year) to come out and play a few shows on the Couch Tour, and this, to me, is their way of saying "thank you" to their fans. A few devoted (as seen in their Bayside tattoos) fans claimed to have driven from New York to see the band, and they were not left disappointed. The band spared the concertgoers from hearing them rant on political issues, the state of music, or whatever else musicians complain about these days and let their blend of heartfelt pop-punk/rock do all the talking, and talk they did. The hour-long setlist left little to be desired, as the band played about the same amount of songs from their entire discography. Old favorites ("Blame it on Bad Luck," "Masterpeice") were paired with new classics ("Boy," "The Ghost of St. Valentine") and even a few rarely-seen songs were thrown in as well ("Rochambo (Rock, Paper, Scissors)", "I and I") with some of the band's timeless tunes ("They're Not Horses, They're Unicorns," "Tortures of the Damned"). The crowd did their part as well, sounding near-perfect when the band let them sing the songs back at them, most notably on "Duality" and "The Walking Wounded." As the band closed out their impressive, energetic, and fun sets with the quintessential Bayside song "Devotion and Desire," the crowd showed their true appreciation for the band, screaming for an encore when most of them knew there would not be one. In my opinion, this is the perfect portrait of the kind of band Bayside is: they know what they're good at, they continue to give it to their fans while still progressing as musicians, and they do it without screaming, autotune, sychronized stage moves, or anything else that may be plaguing music today. In short, if you're looking for a band that makes flat-out good music the right way, Bayside may just be your new favorite band.

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