Me and Tom Gabel, before I wisened up and passed him a bottle.-
My mother-in-law and I verge into oncoming traffic and a glaring sun. I could descend into slumber for a good eight years now, after what transpired for the past few days. Not only did I welcome company out to my new home for a few days, I welcomed a stark realization; a man is only as good as his army. And if it’s an army of sweaty pacifists, (The only punch they’d ever throw would be a right hook in the face of a bad time) then that man isn’t so hard done by. But he will certainly be tired at the end of the day.
I welcomed my strangely conformist yet anarchist sister out to Vancouver for four days of pleasant misfortunes, including a violent peanut fight in a bar that went our way and enough cheap slices of ‘za to force a revolution out of our stomachs. But it was all build-up for the main event Monday night. Punk folksters Against Me! closed out their Canadian tour with Japanther and Saint Alivia at the Croatian Cultural Center in Vancouver on September 15th. Though we’ve shared a tormented and honest love for the better part of 23 years, as the band dropped with fervor into “New Wave” seconds after appearing casually onstage, I failed to see my sister for the better part of the rest of the gig.
A mosh pit at an Against Me! gig has a way of transforming not into a ball of love and togetherness, but nothing less than a gigantic ball of honesty. There’s no room for pretense in any of their tunes, nor is there any need for it in the pit. If you’re down, someone gets you up again. While this is standard fare at any punk show, what sets an Against Me! show apart is how much higher you get thanks to the band when you’re supported up by a few hundred sweaty fists of passion and all things self-righteous.
The band has been touring their major label debut, “New Wave” for close to a year and a half. Their relentless touring makes ol’ Bob Dylan’s “Never Ending Tour” seem like a few hollow dates at a Vegas lounge. “This is my life,” muses lead singer Tom Gabel nonchalantly, pointing to the band’s tour bus between swilling a bottle of Sleeman’s we shared. “It’s the only life I know.” If that’s the case, then Against Me! are existing in the prime of their life. Blistering tunes like “White People For Peace” brought forth rousing approval from the pit (The band became only partially visible through a sea of raised, clenched fists) but also a rousing sentiment that’s inherently prevalent amongst punk bands with a shred of soul.
Their genre has become marginalized by bands who rely on the kind of sponsorship their forefathers decided to originally rebel against. And though Gabel insists that there’s nothing wrong with “Getting your music out to the masses” he didn’t seem so opposed to the idea of creating your own destiny.
Against Me! leaps across genres with the kind of gusto that doesn’t leave you confused but envigorated. The pit slowed down for the lovers to find each other during the swaying tale of summer lore, “Borne on the FM Waves of the Heart.” And the peppy new “Amuptations” rendered Gabel useless against the ill-timed clapping along. It brought a smile from his face, though it paled in comparison to the grins the entire band gave the crowd throughout the night.
It was as if Against Me! welcomed the entire Croatian Cultural Centre into the same basement in Florida where they had their humble beginnings. Major label success has not affected their live set, as evidenced in Vancouver.
Though we’d been drinking without moderation for three straight days before the gig, it was only when we both crashed over the barrier and into each other that we actually attained a sense of appreciation for each other again. And when Gabel threw us high fives on our way back into the fray, it became obvious he appreciated us, the fans, his army, as well.
I welcomed my strangely conformist yet anarchist sister out to Vancouver for four days of pleasant misfortunes, including a violent peanut fight in a bar that went our way and enough cheap slices of ‘za to force a revolution out of our stomachs. But it was all build-up for the main event Monday night. Punk folksters Against Me! closed out their Canadian tour with Japanther and Saint Alivia at the Croatian Cultural Center in Vancouver on September 15th. Though we’ve shared a tormented and honest love for the better part of 23 years, as the band dropped with fervor into “New Wave” seconds after appearing casually onstage, I failed to see my sister for the better part of the rest of the gig.
A mosh pit at an Against Me! gig has a way of transforming not into a ball of love and togetherness, but nothing less than a gigantic ball of honesty. There’s no room for pretense in any of their tunes, nor is there any need for it in the pit. If you’re down, someone gets you up again. While this is standard fare at any punk show, what sets an Against Me! show apart is how much higher you get thanks to the band when you’re supported up by a few hundred sweaty fists of passion and all things self-righteous.
The band has been touring their major label debut, “New Wave” for close to a year and a half. Their relentless touring makes ol’ Bob Dylan’s “Never Ending Tour” seem like a few hollow dates at a Vegas lounge. “This is my life,” muses lead singer Tom Gabel nonchalantly, pointing to the band’s tour bus between swilling a bottle of Sleeman’s we shared. “It’s the only life I know.” If that’s the case, then Against Me! are existing in the prime of their life. Blistering tunes like “White People For Peace” brought forth rousing approval from the pit (The band became only partially visible through a sea of raised, clenched fists) but also a rousing sentiment that’s inherently prevalent amongst punk bands with a shred of soul.
Their genre has become marginalized by bands who rely on the kind of sponsorship their forefathers decided to originally rebel against. And though Gabel insists that there’s nothing wrong with “Getting your music out to the masses” he didn’t seem so opposed to the idea of creating your own destiny.
Against Me! leaps across genres with the kind of gusto that doesn’t leave you confused but envigorated. The pit slowed down for the lovers to find each other during the swaying tale of summer lore, “Borne on the FM Waves of the Heart.” And the peppy new “Amuptations” rendered Gabel useless against the ill-timed clapping along. It brought a smile from his face, though it paled in comparison to the grins the entire band gave the crowd throughout the night.
It was as if Against Me! welcomed the entire Croatian Cultural Centre into the same basement in Florida where they had their humble beginnings. Major label success has not affected their live set, as evidenced in Vancouver.
Though we’d been drinking without moderation for three straight days before the gig, it was only when we both crashed over the barrier and into each other that we actually attained a sense of appreciation for each other again. And when Gabel threw us high fives on our way back into the fray, it became obvious he appreciated us, the fans, his army, as well.
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