Circa Survive Review

I decided to curb my Friday blog post in exchange for posting this today, which is my first article ever written for some kind of newspaper. I wrote this CD/concert review for the Saint, and this is the unedited, first draft that came outta' me:

Blue Sky Noise Storms Detroit

    On Saturday, November 20th, Pennsylvania-based progressive-indie quintet Circa Survive played to a sold out crowd at St. Andrews Hall in Detroit. The show was a part of their ongoing “Blue Sky Noise” U.S. tour, in support of their newest album of the same name which met store shelves in April of this year. Bands supporting Circa Survive for the entire tour were Dredg, Codeseven, and Animals As Leaders.

    The Detroit crowd made it obvious that Circa Survive was the main - if only - attraction on the roster. Reactions were warm and applause was ample for most of the opening bands, but the loudest approval came when Circa Survive’s lead singer, Anthony Green, played as the guest bass player for one Codeseven song. As soon as Dredg ended their set and Circa Survive’s equipment was setting up, a surge of bodies pressed toward the front row in excessive force, trying to secure the perfect vantage point for the headlining set.

    Cheers and angst were only heightened as the powerful first note of Blue Sky Noise’s opening track, “Strange Terrain,” commanded a flurry of crowd-covering confetti from stage-side cannons and the bellowing, half-raspy, off-key exulting voices of fans all around singing along. Through the mass repetition of the first verse, where Green proclaims, “no one could see if we ended up where we needed to be,” the crowd was an implicit verification for Blue Sky Noise’s success and for Circa Survive attending terrain that might not be as strange as they thought.

    The remaining introductory quarter of Blue Sky Noise was pumped out proceeding this as the CD’s first single “Get Out” and jam-heavy “Glass Arrows” further energized the performance and instigated the first storm of crowd and band movement. As “Get Out” gradually builds at the end toward a heavier, groovy breakdown that strays from their typical style, guitarists Colin Frangicetto, Nick Beard, and Brendan Ekstrom were up and down in sync; Anthony Green was dancing everywhere, along with the unbalanced dancing and shoving of fans.

    Long-time Circa Survive fans were well-awarded too with the inclusion of older songs on the set list from their freshman and sophomore albums, Juturna and On Letting Go, respectively. A hybrid song was even created during the night, where a standing crowd favorite, “In Fear and Faith,” was mixed with a song called “Invalid Litter Dept.” by the now-defunct band, At the Drive-In (associated with the Mars Volta). During past shows, Circa Survive have made a habit of covering other bands impressionable to them such as Nirvana.

In the spirit of blending the old with the new, Anthony Green solidified his role as the origin of energy and antics. Reflecting an earlier show in Cleveland during March of 2010 where he was shouting another standing favorite, “Act Appalled,” from the rafters above the crowd, Green was held up on his knees by adoring fans as he sung the last portion of Blue Sky Noise’s second single, “Imaginary Enemy,” before its exploding guitar solo. Similar to 2007’s Van’s Warped Tour too, where Green was adorned with a sundress and making wisecracks during many sets, he literally demanded the entire crowd to act as if they were shooting lazers at him, to make poodle noises, and to emit the most powerful “death growl” they could.

Other notable additions to the show included rotund confetti-filled balloons punched around the venue from ceiling to balcony, along with a segment where the band invited the Detroit members of their personal fan club, the “Creature Club,” to sing on stage the chorus of the mellow and acoustic “Spirit of the Stairwell” off the new album. The entire display demanded an encore from the crowd, which was valued with three additional songs from Blue Sky Noise. They started off with the instrumental “Compendium” and continued with “Dyed in the Wool,” completing the final quarter of the CD.

Before singing with the crowd the final song of the night, “I Felt Free,” Green urged the crowd to “take the feeling you find here with you, take it out with you wherever you go and do with it what you want. Share it with friends and family; let people know about it.” Consider this an act of sharing then. Circa Survive will be returning to Michigan with co-headliner Anberlin and Foxy Shazam on Friday, January 21st to play at the Orbit Room in Grand Rapids. After addressing the events of the November 20th show as “the most fun we’ve had in Detroit so far,” don’t miss out on contributing to the inevitable best time Circa Survive could have in Grand Rapids. Pick up a copy of Blue Sky Noise, pick up a ticket, and give your weekend a good kick start.