You'll get what you paid for: My Weekend with Circa Survive

Circa Survive is my favorite band. They have been my favorite band since I was sixteen years old. These are facts. We all have that one band who puts into music exactly what you're feeling, details exactly what you're going through, and says the exact things you need to hear to feel welcomed, inspired, and accepted. That's what the band means to me, and to so many others. So when the band set up their Safe Camp at Union Transfer on August 24 and 25 to celebrate the release of their fourth full-length album Violent Waves, there was no way I was going to miss either show. There's a certain level of expectation when it comes to seeing Circa Survive, as they are, without doubt, the best live band in the world, but what's incredible about the band's live show is that no matter how good they were the last time you saw them, they manage to find ways to get even better.

The first night of shows were opened by  Birdy NumNum and the Spirit Squad and Bear Hands, who both had a trancy, indie feel to them, and while both bands sounded on-point, they paled in comparison to the openers for night two. Circa Survive took the stage with the activation of five light screens that projected various colors throughout the set, and Friday's set was boldly opened with "Birth of the Economic Hit Man," the 7-minute opening track on Violent Waves. After "Hit Man" came "Sharp Practice," the first single from the album. Friday's set was focused more on the deeper cuts from Circa's back catalog, featuring songs like the title track from On Letting Go and the underrated Juturna track "We're All Thieves". The band played six tracks from Violent Waves, the highlight of which being "The Lottery," as fans were greeted by the smiling face of Geoff Rickly, former frontman of Thursday, who appears on the album version of the song. Thanks to Thursday's indefinite hiatus, it's difficult to see a situation in which Rickly is able to play the song with Circa Survive often, so to see him onstage one more time was a welcomed surprise.

While Friday's show was memorable in its own right, most of the members of the audience who were lucky enough to attend both record release shows would tell you that Saturday was the better day, thanks to the show's openers. Electronic duo Grimace Federation took to the stage first, and as they played to a crowd of people who probably had no idea who they were. Still, the Union Transfer crowd was entranced by an energetic, mystifying set from a band that looks to make even more waves of fans in the future.

Fellow Doylestown, PA natives Balance & Composure were up next, and their set had a little bit of a twist on it: the band's regular bassist was replaced by Title Fight bassist/vocalist Ned Russin. This resulted in the band playing a little bit more of their older material (from Only Boundaries and the band's split with Tiger's Jaw), rather than supporting last year's breakthrough full-length Separation. The hometown crowd was more energetic for B&C than any of the other openers, and the band's energy onstage was a reflection of the audience's warm reception of a band who gets better and better every time they play live.

By the time Circa Survive took the stage Saturday night, the crowd was filled to the brim with anticipation. The band's set was completely different from the first night (save for the night's closing track, "Get Out"), with only seven songs (out of 30) were played on both nights. Saturday's set saw the re-entry of fan favorites "Imaginary Enemy" and "The Difference Between Medicine and Poison is in the Dose," and featured a song from Violent Waves that wasn't played the day before ("Bird Sounds"). The band decided to end their main set they way they began it the day before, closing with "Birth of the Economic Hit Man" before coming back for a well-deserved encore. 

As I said before, anyone who was able to catch both nights of the Circa Survive Violent Waves Release "Party," as the band called it, should consider themselves very lucky. The band's energy and passion are matched only by their presence and precision, and no other band on earth combines all of these things in a live setting better than they do. It's easy to say this, but the experience of the Violent Waves release shows truly were unlike any other concert I've ever been to, and if it's any indication for what Circa Survive have in store for their fall tour (with Touche Amore, Balance & Composure, and O'Brother), the Violent Waves have only just begun to reach the shore.

BUT, since we're all about giving our readers something special, here's our gift to you: a picture of the setlist from each show! In the picture below, the setlist from Friday is on the right (the one that has "Hitman" on the top), and Saturday's setlist (the one that says "Lottery" on the top) is on the left. It should be noted that while "Frozen Creek" was listed on Saturday's setlist, but the band did not play it due to time constraints.

Keep your eyes out for our review of Violent Waves this week!