Images: Never Shout Never, A Rocket to the Moon, Fake Problems, Carter Hulsey October 2, 2011 at the House of Blues

I’ve been going to shows for over half my life now, and never was I more out of place than at Sunday’s Never Shout Never show at the House of Blues in Las Vegas. And that is absolutely not to be taken as an insult. I was quite impressed with the mostly teenage, mostly female crowd. I’ve never seen a group of music fans more genuinely excited to be at a show before, and in particular I loved how enthusiastic and supportive the crowd was to the three openers that night, each band greeted by a sea of applause and screams of joy that would put the opening of The Mark, Tom and Travis Show to shame. It warmed my heart to see receptiveness in place of the feigned aloofness that I often see with older bar show crowds.

Of course the biggest reaction of the night came when Never Shout Never’s Christofer Drew took the stage, a cigarette jutting out from his bandaged hand and a smile adorning his face, obviously very appreciative of the warm welcome. A bevy of roses, scrunchies, and homemade gifts flew towards the stage at the singer, whose injured hand kept him from playing the guitar, but motivated him to make up for it with spastic energy, constantly moving back and forth across the stage, inching closer and closer to the edge to greet his legions of fans. In a move I’ve never seen before, the pop rockers released the setlist for this tour before its kickoff. It’s actually quite a clever move, allowing fans to bone up on the pertinent songs before arriving at the venue, though seeing the Dashboard-like call and response of the crowd that often drowned out Drew and his band, I doubt any boning up on the discography would have been necessary. The actual setlist was slightly different than the one advertised, but I don’t think anyone minded.

In the interest of full disclosure, openers Fake Problems have been one of my favorite bands since the release of It’s Great to Be Alive in 2009, and the hardworking Florida “beach punks” were the main reason I decided to come out to the show that night. They were well worth it. They made the most of their 30-minute set, mixing tracks from their most recent album, Real Ghosts Caught on Tape, with a couple of deeper cuts. They kicked things off with “ADT,” and the Real Ghosts opener succeeded in getting everyone on the increasingly packed floor dancing along. I always say that Fake Problems are a band that could be huge if given enough exposure, and the positive response to songs like their self-proclaimed “million dollar song” “Soulless,” slowed down and heartfelt “Songs for Teenagers,” and funky “Diamond Rings” proves me right. Fake Problems are truly versatile, able to fit in with a wide range of bands, from Surfer Blood to Gaslight Anthem to the night’s headliner, and a large part of that is due to the charisma of front man Chris Farren. The singer and guitarist might have been out of the band’s usual element, but he never showed it, joking with the crowd, reminding them which of their songs are the “sexiest,” and giving an early-flung flower to guitarist and birthday boy Casey Lee.

Fake Problems was sandwiched between two bands with varying levels of country influence. A Rocket to the Moon tore through approximately 40 minutes of country-tinged rock while vocalist Nick Santino, showed off his pride with a vintage Garth Brooks shirt. First opener Carter Hulsey was even more country-leaning, sounding like a pop-oriented, full band Corey Branan. Some of my current favorite musicians, Lucero, Chuck Ragan, and Gaslight Anthem, for example, all owe a debt or two to traditional country music, so it’s cool to see that those influences have permeated through to other scenes as well and helped make me feel right at home.

-Emily Matview

Photos by Emily Matview | https://www.flickr.com/photos/holdfastnow/

and Tyler Newton | http://500px.com/spottedlens