It was a dark and stormy night -- seriously stormy, and I think we've had enough. CoolMom and I ventured out in it, though, along with CoolAunt and CoolUncle. I'd forced everyone to leave early for The Stone Pony so that we could get a parking spot near the venue. That paid off at the end of the night when everyone scurried from bar to car as the storm tossed them every which way. It also allowed us to see all of the bands on the bill for Night One of The Bouncing Souls' four night Home for the Holidays residency at The Stone Pony.
Night One celebrated Chunksaah Records' (The Bouncing Souls own record label) The Philadelphia Sound and featured each of the bands from that release. Last night was the first time since the release show for that record, ten years ago, that the four bands played together. Go! For The Throat, The Curse, Knives Out, and Paint It Black each did their own roughly thirty minute set of hardcore punk. The crowd got larger and more animated as the evening progressed. Go! For The Throat's frontman had to egg people on to dance, while Paint It Black saw a constant barrage of crowd surfers breaching the barricades. Our group had settled into the spot next to the press / photo area to stage right where we could see everything and remain safely removed from the fray.
After The Curse's set, I had the opportunity to meet and talk with one of the readers of this blog. He's a dad like me; and like me, he loves going out to see live music. We had a great chat over a beverage and traded anecdotes about sharing some concert experiences with our kids and about the strange looks we get from some of our fellow parents when we mention that we're going out to see yet another band. It was really nice to put a face to the Twitter handle.
At 10:30, The Bouncing Souls took the stage. Al Barr of The Dropkick Murphys had put together the setlist for them, and he was honored with a photo, surrounded by a wreath, right next to the drummer. I've always been aware of The Bouncing Souls, but I've never really followed them. I'd never been to any of their Home for the Holidays shows before, and I felt like it would make a great night out for our visitors. We weren't disappointed. Barr's hour-long setlist covered everything anyone would want to hear like "True Believers," "Lean on Sheena," "Hopeless Romantic," "Sing A Long Forever," "I Like Your Mom," and "East Coast F*ck You."
I will say that, even though I enjoyed all of the other bands, The Bouncing Souls' fast-paced, melodic punk came as somewhat of a relief after two hours of relentless hardcore. You wouldn't have known by just looking at the crowd that things had mellowed out ever so slightly. The Souls' fans are a devoted bunch. They knew every word, and The Stone Pony shook as they all sang along and attempted to storm the stage.
Last night was a great way to unwind after some of the stress of the holidays. "Lots of bands get famous playing music, but almost none of them remember where they came from. Not many bands would organize a four-day party for all of their friends like The Bouncing Souls," said Paint It Black lead singer Dan Yemin as his band closed their set. The Bouncing Souls' Home for the Holidays continues at The Stone Pony through December 29th, and I can heartily recommend that you get some of your own family and friends (old and new) together and join the party.
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