Nothing short of amazing

Say Anything; Especially Hellogoodbye

By: Joe Roberge & Barry Nickerson, Anchor Editors

Issue date: 11/6/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment


On November 1, the MySpace.com Music Tour came to Providence, R.I. to perform at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel. The tour brought great bands such as Hellogoodbye and Say Anything to Rhode Island.

The show was huge; the venue was packed with eager fans awaiting the headlining bands. The first band was called Polysics and was definitely a sight to see. With their unique outfits and even more unique music (imagine listening to a Killers album after it was thrown in a blender and all mixed-up), Polysics brought their own group of hardcore fans to the front of the stage.

After Polysics was the second opening band, Young Love, who were generic and kind of plain, but were still talented musicians nevertheless. Their music sounded like anything else you'd hear on the radio today, but it wasn't bad music. They sounded a little like Nickelback.

The crowd roared with anticipation as Hellogoodbye took the stage. They were nothing short of amazing-they got the whole crowd dancing and screaming along with their pop-rock jams. Hellogoodbye sounded just like their album, which is impressive since their music is generally considered "studio music;" "Homewrecker" and "Shimmy-Shimmy Quarter-Turn" sounded even better live than on the recording.

Finally, Say Anything, the headlining act, was met with raucous applause. They wasted no time in taking control of the crowd, playing one awesome song after another and keeping everyone moving, crowd-surfing, and singing along. Say Anything played singles like "Wow, I Can Get Sexual, Too" (the she-touched-herself song) and "Alive with the Glory of Love." Say Anything also played many tracks from their new album, In Defense of the Genre, which was released on Oct. 23.

Sadly there was no time for an encore, but the concert left us all feeling pretty good. This was an excellent mix of bands that had a little something for everyone. Keep an eye out for some awesome upcoming shows at Lupo's, like Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Avenged Sevenfold, and the Silversun Pickups, and if you haven't heard Say Anything or Hellogoodbye yet, make sure that you check them out on MySpace!



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