Squee

Wednesday we saw The Architects, Thursday, and My Chemical Romance at the Tabernacle in Atlanta. The venue's a renovated church in downtown, complete with original wood flooring and stained-glass windows. The acoustics are wonderful; it's just the right size for a concert.

The Architects were first, but unfortunately we didn't get to see much of them, being in line first to get in, then for t-shirts, then for drinks. What we heard of them was really good, though, and I'd like to hear more of them. Thursday was next; I'd never seen them before either, and they were awesome. Geoff has this compelling stage presence, he is everywhere with that mic, swinging it, pumping the stand, practically impaling himself on it. I don't know the names of the rest of the band, but they're tight, on the spot with their music. My favorite song of theirs was "Jet Black Mirror".

I've seen a total of 8 MCR shows, but their ATL show was beyond the best of the other seven. The energy, the technique, Gerard's voice, the song choices, everything, was right there. Frank kept the rhythm going with extra riffs, "noises" like the howls in "House of Wolves", etc, and his usual head-banging chord slamming. Gerard mostly stalked the stage, but he had the audience in the palm of his hand the whole time with that incredible voice. Ray seemed really intent on his playing but provided a steady stream of backing vocals. Mikey was his usual calm self, holding the beat. Shred (as I call him) is an amazing drummer and a perfect fit in the band. And Dewees? He's right up there in Nick Rhodes territory, if you ask me.

They played a good mixture of songs from all four albums, and a few you might not've expected, like "Hang 'Em High" and "Our Lady of Sorrows". Have to say, though, that the new songs stood out like a beacon: "Planetary" literally rocked the place, with everybody jumping to the beat and the bass drum/guitar pounding through the floorboards. "Vampire Money" is one of the best rave-up punk songs written in a looooong time; Ray shines on that one, with a solo that should set the strings on fire. He's a frighteningly talented guitarist, and way underappreciated.

My personal favorite was "Bulletproof Heart", which exploded like fireworks out of the calm, almost-sweet-sounding opening. The crowd went wild with that one, too; I was singing my lungs out the whole time. I love that song, man.

We were able to get to the "back barrier", standing right behind the sound and lighting guys, on the left side between Frank and Gerard (our favorite place to be, yeah!). Straight shot to the stage, not a lot of heads or arms in the way, it was great. And the crowd was fantastic! Lots of guys there this time, and a wide range of ages, from teens to grandparents (and lots of us, uh, not so much either one). We all enjoyed it, and everybody was polite, does that make sense? No rude yelling or nasty remarks, just real fans who wanted to hear the music.

And hear the music we did. It was tremendous music, and so well done. They're getting better and better all the time. I really hope to see them again on this tour; maybe they'll be back around the States after all the European festivals. MCR has raised the bar, and raised the roof. KILLJOYS, MAKE SOME NOISE!

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Just wanted to let y'all know that "Here's the Sex Pistols" has been deleted due to a security breach. I have no plans to restore it. "Never Mind the Bollocks" will be my only blog from now on, and I plan to be posting more often.

For those of you who read SP, the feelings haven't disappeared; only the words are gone.

Rise Above
xo jen