Arguably one of the most iconic and influential punk bands, Face To Face recently dropped by for a short set of shows to support their newest album Three Chords and a Half Truth with bands Teenage Bottlerocket and Blacklist Royals at the Glass House in Pomona, CA and back-to-back shows at House Of Blues, Anaheim giving south bay fans something to talk about.
If the bands The Gaslight Anthem, Rancid, and The Swellers had a punk rock baby it would be Blacklist Royals. More and more fantastic bands are making their way out of Nashville, T.N. and I’m pleased to report that these guys do not disappoint. Their heart felt lyrics and rock n roll sound lends itself perfectly to the likes of Face to Face. Blacklist Royals are no stranger to the spotlight; they have spent the last three years almost exclusively on tour landing them spots in American and European festivals alike, letting them play for thousands of fans and gaining them tons of recognition. This time on the rode allowed them to perfect their craft and put on a killer show. Most opening bands have a hard time getting the crowd to clap along. Even fewer opening bands have the energy, let alone dedication to get an entire room involved complete with moshing and audience sing-along’s. Their Debut album Semper Liberi got plenty of fans attention and left their fans begging for more. You can look for their sophomore album in stores and online soon.
Teenage Bottlerocket were up to their regular antics with high energy, and intense songs complete with props and perverted banter to fill out the set. Teenage Bottlerocket has a huge amount of dedicated fans that will follow them to the edge of the earth, shouting lyrics form their seven albums all the way, and this show was no exception. Teenage Bottlerocket got the crowd pumped at had fans singing along to a lot of new songs form their album Freak Out!. Their stage presence is very similar to Anti-Flag with some of the teenage energy that Blink-182 is known for. It is no wonder why they have so many dedicated fans; but after a short set, fans were getting restless for Face To Face.
Yet again Face to Face was back in town drawing hundreds of fans to their shows. On Saturday, May 11, 2013 they pulled out all of the stops to make sure it was a memorable night. An old school set list with a few new songs snuck in for self promotion made everyone happy and had the crowd singing and opening circle pits almost the whole night. Face To Face made a point to show how appreciative they were about the fan support from California ever since the early 80’s. It’s almost like nothing has changed when they played Disconnected and the entire place erupted with that old school energy that punk shows are known for.
Face To Face’s ability to keep the dream alive and relive the glory days is amazing. The sheer fact that they have been producing consistently fantastic albums that still have a positive fan response shows that there is hope for bands to keep the ideals and atmosphere of those when they were first formed.
Review by: Eric Walden
