Thursday, The Fall of Troy, The Dear Hunter
Boardwalk “¢ Thursday, Oct. 8, 2009
Words & Photos Russ Wonsley

Looking at the lineup for last Thursday night’s show at Boardwalk, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had heard of The Dear Hunter from close friends but had never taken the time to listen to them. With such a buzz surrounding them, I was interested to have the opportunity to see them live. When The Dear Hunter had finally finished setting up their equipment, I saw that I was in for a unique performance. Three keyboards littered the stage with dozens of effect pedals covering the floor around them. A tall, bearded man took the main microphone; and from the first note he sang, I knew that this band had a buzz for a reason. There was one point when all the members of The Dear Hunter were harmonizing with each other on stage. It was refreshing to hear vocals done without the aid of a tuning program.

Up next was The Fall of Troy, and their performance was everything I expected it to be. Thomas Erak (lead vocals, guitar) burst onstage with high energy and fast guitar riffs. He jumped up and down the stage and pulled the whole venue into the performance. It was thrilling to see a musician keep riffing while fully engulfed in a crowd of screaming fans. The set list ranged from familiar favorites to songs that had just been released on their newest album, In the Unlikely Event, on Equal Vision Records.

Then, the New Jersey post-hardcore group Thursday finished off the show with a solid performance. They started off their set with solid songs such as “Division Street” and “For the Workforce, Drowning,” and the crowd echoed Geoff Rickly’s (lead vocals) every word. It was apparent that Thursday still has a strangle hold on post-hardcore fans, even after being involved in the scene since 1997. With complimenting reviews backing up their newly released album Common Existence from Epitaph Records, it looks like we can expect Thursday to keep a strong grasp on the genre for many years to come.

Since the 51st Grammy Awards have already happened and you’ve witnessed MIA perform at nine months pregnant. You may have seen MIA’s OB/GYN anxiously standing side-stage, as the baby was also due that day. You may or may not have also seen the gentlemen of Coldplay in attendance, who were likely “served” by Mr. Joe Satriani‘s attorneys. Fox News reported that Satriani’s lawyers have hired a team to “dog the band everywhere they go” to personally serve them the papers. Chris Martin and company vehemently deny plagiarizing Satriani’s tune. They are considered guilty until proven innocent in a court of law. Additionally, Katy Perry has big boobs and”¦ oh yeah, people also won Grammys.

Joaquin Phoenix wants to be a rapper, and he’s serious. The news broke recently, followed by rumors that it was a joke. But Phoenix says that it’s true and even confirmed that P. Diddy will be working on his new record. About freestyling on stage, Phoenix said “”¦ it’s really nerve-wracking, because there’s literally people there heckling you.” I guess it’s official; he’s traded in acting for a mic and a Tom-Hanks-in-Castaway beard. Go figure.

Silversun Pickups are expected to release their new album Swoon by late spring, and you can expect singer Brian Aubert’s girl-ish vocals “times five.” Aubert said “there isn’t a single song on here that would’ve made sense on [the previous album] Carnavas.” He went on to say that this album is “Bizarrely big. Every song is that much more complicated.” The band will be playing the first night of Coachella in April, headlined by Sir Paul McCartney.

New Jersey natives Thursday are set to release their fifth album. The band, who split from Island Records two years ago, are back on an indie label where they belong. Thursday will release Common Existence Feb. 17 on Epitaph Records. Singer Geoff Rickly told Rolling Stone, “I don’t know if it was because we didn’t have a label, and we were just writing for ourselves, but we’d get together, and shit would be turned up to 11 again”¦ doing all the fun stuff we’d done on Full Collapse.” The new track “Friends in the Armed Forces” is graced by vocalist Walter Schrieffels of Quicksand, a band that had a major influence on the early Thursday. Longtime Thursday fans should be excited the band is heading back to their roots.

After a drawn-out battle with Victory Records, which ended in the band putting their tail between their legs, Hawthorne Heights has finally escaped the Chicago-based hardcore label to sign a multi-rights deal with Wind-Up Records (Creed’s old label). In addition to standard recording royalties, the band will also fork over percentages of merchandise, publishing and touring revenues as well as 40 percent of their souls.

In other news”¦ and quite possibly the saddest news of the year thus far, Once couple Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova have split.