Review: Days Away/Snapcase/Finch Show

Knights of Columbus
May 6, 2003

First off, let me say that I’m pretty impressed with the relationship these guys keep with their fans. The show was scheduled to start at 7:30, and the doors open at 6:30. So I figure, let’s get there early so we can get close to the front. Apparently everyone else had the same idea as there was a line halfway around the building when we got there about 5:45. We pulled in and saw the line of people and then we saw the bands tour bus’s. But what else did we see? The freakin band members all standing outside the bus, talking to kids, sitting and relaxing, and skateboarding around the parking lot. That’s hella cool if you ask me, because it just goes to show that they don’t think they’re too cool for their fans. I think that’s pretty awesome really. Now, onto the show.

We get into the building, which isn’t very big at all. Smaller than a school gym actually. That’s cool though cuz I prefer smaller venues over large ones. Finch was the only band listed on Drive Thru’s website, as well as on the tickets themselves. So we figure, $12 and we get to see Finch, not a bad deal. Once we get into the building, we see a t-shirt stand selling Finch, Snapcase, and Days Away items. So not only do we get to see Finch, we also get to see Snapcase and Days Away. Up first was Days Away. I had actually never heard of these guys, but if I remember right, they said they’re from Pittsburgh.(I think) No one seemed to be really into them, with the exception of a few cheers here and there when they would name their song. The sound from them wasn’t great, but they had an emo sound to their music. They put on a decent 45 minute set, but I was kinda of glad to see them go.

Next up is Snapcase. I have heard of these guys and purchased their latest album awhile back. They’re not bad, but not one of my favorites. People seemed a bit more excited to see them, and the pit livened up quite a bit although I steered clear of it for their set. While these guys aren’t one of my favorite bands, I love the song Coagulate, which happened to be the song they opened up with. I was pretty into their set, which went a bit longer than Days Away. The only songs I remember them playing though were Coagulate and New Kata. They were a lot more energetic than the opening band, which wasn’t hard to beat really.

Next up, obviously, fucking Finch! I love these guys, honestly. Their album, What It Is To Burn, was my favorite album of 2002. Well, tied with The Used, but yeah. They opened up with Grey Matter and really got the crowd going. Time to go into the pit and get my ass kicked, hell yeah! Let me remind you, this was only my second time ever in a mosh pit, and the first time was for GC/NFG so it was pretty tame. Now, I don’t remember the exact order they played the songs in, but I do remember what songs they played. New Beginnings, Post Script, Perfection Through Silence, Letters To You, Awake, Stay With Me, Project Mayhem, Untitled, and a new song called (If I remember correctly)Dark Marks and Blood Stains. When they “finished up,” they didn’t say bye or anything. They just stopped playing and left the stage, so naturally we knew they’d be back. The whole crowd began chanting Finch, as well as screaming for them to play Ender. If you’ve ever seen the guys live, then you’ll know that Ender is fucking awesome live. Don’t know what it is about it, but it’s awesome. So they came back out and played Ender, then went directly into What It Is To Burn before thanking the fans and ending their set.

Overall, even though I wasn’t into the first band and was only a little interested in Snapcase, Finch made it MORE than worth the $12.00 I paid for the ticket. The show kicked major ass and I will definately see Finch again when they come around.