Alkaline Trio // The Waterfront 16.04.14
To some ‘emo’ may be a dirty word, but not to these guys. After celebrating fifteen years together in 2011, Alkaline Trio returned to The Waterfront to an almost sold out show.
To some ‘emo’ may be a dirty word, but not to these guys. After celebrating fifteen years together in 2011, Alkaline Trio returned to The Waterfront to an almost sold out show. The Illinois threesome combine punk attitude with more emo lyrics (and the occasional heartbroken slow number) that still draw crowds year after year. The mid-week date and fairly hefty £20 ticket price hadn't seemed to put off anybody this time either, and those in attendance ranged from young ‘uns with their parents in tow, to older fans who had been following the guys from the beginning.
Fellow Americans Bayside provided main support, and clearly had a few fans of their own in the audience. After suffering a tragedy while on tour early on in their career, it was good to see they were still going, but one of their first hits, ‘Devotion And Desire’ in 2005, was still their most popular with live fans.
Headliners Alkaline Trio blasted through their extensive back catalogue, playing tracks old and new, much to everyone’s delight (unless you count the singularly unimpressed girl stood next to me, clearly dragged along by her boyfriend and very unhappy about it too). They opened with 'This Could Be Love', played crowd favourite 'Private Eye' but also included 'Goodbye Forever' from a much earlier EP too. Alkaline Trio are one of those bands whose fans are supremely dedicated, know every word by heart and aren't shy about singing along at the top of their lungs and this show included something for everyone. Frontman Matt Skiba was relatively quiet throughout though, choosing to play songs rather than chat to the audience, but it didn't seem to dampen anyone’s enjoyment. Their final encore song was 'Radio', which I know people had been hoping to hear all night, leaving everyone with big grins on their faces and the merch stand bombarded.
