An eager crowd of millennials slipped on their comfortable shoes and made sure to do their stretches before packing Tempe’s Marquee Theatre when Silverstein came to town this week. The band is celebrating 25 Years of Noise- an incredible milestone in their career- and they brought Thursday and Arm’s Length along for the cross-country ride.
Canadian noisemakers Arm’s Length launched right into their brief but impactful set, getting the crowd riled up during “Funny Face” and “Object Permanence”. Younger fans pushed towards the barricade to rock out with the energetic group and they encouraged everyone to sing along and get hyped up for the rest of the night.
New Jersey’s finest post-hardcore band Thursday had a massive draw for Wednesday evening’s event as their touring rarely brings them out to Arizona. The highly anticipated set woke up a room full of fans who remembered the basement shows of their youth and how well this music translates today. From “Signals Over the Air” to “Jet Black New Year”, fans dusted off their old moshpit moves and lost their voices screaming along. Thankfully, the band is still creating and evolving and their latest single, “Taking Inventory in a Frozen Lake”, was wonderfully received. Their sprint of a set closed out with “Understanding in a Car Crash” and “War All the Time”- the perfect conclusion for such a special band.
Silverstein has been chugging along for over two decades and their consistency makes them one of the most entertaining bands to see live. They took the room on a trip down memory lane with a stage flanked by huge screens telling the story of where the band started to the incredible crowds they see today. With the fans smiling ear to ear, the band emerged to “Skin & Bones” and “Confession” and the pit started moving. Singer Shane Told prowled the riser built on the Marquee’s stage and fans flung themselves over the barricade for a chance to get closer to their favorites.
The energy was a mix of gratitude and pure nostalgia for an atmosphere of positivity throughout the night. The transition from “The Afterglow” to “Aquamarine” had more than a few people visibly emotional as everyone took the journey through the band’s influential discography together. After a 19-song speedrun that put the audience through its paces, Silverstein returned for an encore of “My Heroine”, “Smashed Into Pieces” and “Bleeds No More”. A very satisfied audience left the venue knowing with certainty that- in the band’s own words- Silverstein is forever.
