Two headliners play one for the kids (and adults)

Two headliners play one
for the kids (and adults)

Dunkin' Donuts Center
Providence, Rhode Island

By BRUCE HUTCHINGS
STATIC and FEEDBACK correspondent

The decision to see Jimmy Eat World and Taking
Back Sunday storm the Dunkin Donuts Center in
Providence, R.I., was a spur of the moment one –
and the surprises didn’t stop throughout the
evening.

Two hours before the co-headliners took the stage,
my buddy and I decided to see if we could still get
tickets, and shockingly there were plenty available.
Moments before the concert began people were
still purchasing tickets at the door, and we wound
up seated only 25 feet from the stage. Phoenix, AZ
natives The Format were already playing by the time
we wandered in from the local tavern, and the
crowd was anxiously awaiting the main attraction.

The two main bands have spent the tour trading
roles of opener and closer, and on April 16th,
Jimmy Eat World drew the short straw. As frontman
Jim Adkins stalked on stage, he was accompanied
by static noise pouring out of television sets littering
the stage – not to mention the screams of teenie-
bopper punk-rock divas. As the rest of the band
joined Adkins, the screams died out, and the show

finally started. With minimal downtime, JEW streamed solidly through their catalogue. Playing for over an hour,
the band rocked through songs like “Praise Chorus,” “Get It Faster,” their latest single, “Work,” and their biggest
hit, “The Middle.” The group closed out their thoroughly enjoyable set with “Sweetness,” and although their radio-
ready singles seemed to get the most crowd reaction, no one seemed to have any complaints about the show.

But while JEW got the engine idling, Taking Back Sunday pushed them into second gear. Their harmonious
wailing frothed the crowd into a frenzy almost immediately, as the younger set began pogo-ing and jumping to
the music. As band members plowed into the initial rift of “Bike Scene,” audience members abandoned their
seats and rushed the floor. Flooding the small venue, the pre-pubescent punks seemed to move closer to the
stage in one mass. As the hopelessly understaffed security guards played cat and mouse with the audience
hooligans, parents were left to stand by and stare disgustedly. Not even threats of groundings could quell this
crowd.

Still, it was hard for even the most subdued audience members to stay stationary. Lead singer Adam Lizzara
danced like a madman on stage, twirling his mic like Roger Daltrey’s stepson. TBS separated their songs with
bursts of humor, helping the audience swallow the more serious messages of some of the tracks. As Lizzara
broke the third mic stand of the tour – which is only a week old to date – he thanked the city of Providence for
having an ample supply. And that was when the audience members started throwing shoes.

As the crowd became increasingly rambunctious, crowd surfers and moshers started losing articles of clothing.

“Preparedness is a good quality to have,” Lizzara said, thanking audience members for their donations. “You are
all very kind, except when shoes are being thrown at us. That is a little weird.”

Although their set included standard hits like “Cute Without the ‘E’ (Cut from the Team),” “You’re So Last
Summer,” and “You Know How I Do,” the band also played some of their latest hits, like “A Decade Under the
Influence.” Tracks like “Error Operator,” which will be on their upcoming disc, release date unknown, suggest
that the latest release will be absolutely up to par.

As TBS wrapped up a fantastic show, I felt a new sense of hope for the music scene. TBS and JEW are proof
that there is a new, fresh, smart and catchy rock style that doesn’t have to resort to the gimmicks of bands like
Good Charlotte or Simple Plan. If you have been concerned that kids of this generation are becoming musically
misguided, this tour is proof that some still have good taste. So do us a favor, kids: throw out those Linkin Park
CDs, and go check out something worth listening to.

Find out more about the bands at www.jimmyeatworld.net and www.takingbacksunday.com.