Pre-Show

I was scheduled to interview Hidden In Plain View at 6pm. Despite traffic, horrendous rain, and leaving a little late, I arrived at The Roxy precisely on time. I called who I was told to call in order to do the interview, and I was told to hold on for about 20 minutes, then call back. I called back 20 minutes later, and no answer. I continued to call about every 20 minutes until 8:40, when I was inside the venue. So I spent 2 ˝ hours waiting outside, in the rain. This is the second time I have been set to interview Hidden In Plain View, and plans were spoiled (both times, on their part).

Punchline

I had only heard a few songs by this band previous, and I was pleasantly surprised with how good they were. Definitely some good pop-punk to brighten up the dreary mood I was in. Lots of fun crowd interaction. They gave out trivia on California, and had people shout “Fuck Yeah,” Team America style. They played about five songs.

A Thorn For Every Heart

I had heard good things of this band. And I was pleased yet again. The whole band had tons of energy. The lead singer was dancing his heart out on stage. The Tambourine was a-rocking. Fun for everyone, and sounds good too. It’s a winning combination.

Hellogoodbye

The drummer and lead singer took the stage for an acoustic song first. It was a cute song, comprised of vocals, a bongo and a banjo (or at least that‘s what the instruments looked like). After the song, the rest of the band hit the stage. More tambourine rocking! It was great. Hellogoodbye is pretty fun live. My favorite song of the night was “Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn.”

Hidden In Plain View

I must be a sucker for this band, 'cause all the animosity I had felt earlier had gone down a whole lot. Their set included (not particularly in order) “Bleed For You,” “The Chaser,” “Shamans Witches Magic,” “Where The Highways End,” “Belly Full of Kerosene,” “Ashes, Ashes” and ended the show with “Twenty Below.” Every aspect of their performance was awesome. This band rocks harder live than on their EP, as it was mostly songs from it. Lead singer, Joe Reo, mentioned that it might be the last time the band ever plays The Roxy, and that it might be the last time they play in any small club for that matter. Maybe it’s cocky to think that way, but this band’s music is pretty damn good. Their best songs were “Bleed For You” and “Twenty Below.”

P.S. my concert buddy, long time connoisseur of boys in girls pants, has given her coveted "Tightest Pants of the Night" award to Jesse, the piano-playing, tambourine-rocking kid from Hellogoodbye. Congratulations, Jesse!

Review by: Candice