One thing I know about living in Albuquerque is there is two primary venues for small bands. One being the Sunshine Theater, which is where the Secret Valentine Tour’s 10th stop would be. Now, I’ve attended many shows at the Sunshine, but none quite like this. The tour featuring bands of the pop punk and power pop persuasion, it was quite a line up. Featuring headliner, We The Kings, and opening acts being the Maine, the Cab, There for Tomorrow, and VersaEmerge, this was a tour that I figured was going to be like every other tour out there, but wouldn’t you know that I was indeed surprised.
The first band set to open for the night was recent Fueled By Ramen signie, VersaEmerge, a quintet that hails from Port St. Lucie, Florida. From previous research I had done on this band before the actual performance, they were continually compared to label mates, Paramore, due to the fact that they're fronted by a female. I took it upon myself to listen to their self-titled EP that they recently released and I was surprised how anyone could compare this band to Paramore. The band boasts a darker sound that can be reminiscent of bands such as Chiodos. Unfortunately for me, I wasn’t able to see the full band perform at the stop here. According to singer, Sierra Kusterbeck, the bands trailer got two flats on their journey here and made it just a mere 10 minutes before show time. So she, along with guitarist, Blake Harnage, hit the stage with just an acoustic guitar and their voices. For those who know me best are aware that I love bands that do great acoustically and that’s exactly what VE did. Sierra, although small, has a voice that is more powerful than many female vocalists out there. It set the mood for the crowd and it was very mellow and I enjoyed every bit of it.
Next up were Orlando natives, There For Tomorrow. I did zero research on the band beforehand, but I have to say, they convinced me to purchase their 2008 self titled EP. The band itself recently beat out headliner, We The Kings, for the MTVU Woodie for break out artist of the year.. The bands live performance was more than enough to get me jumping along to the pop filled choruses. All in all, There for Tomorrow is one band I would definitely love to see again.
Las Vegas’ own, The Cab, was one act that I was anticipating the most. Having influences such as Justin Timberlake to Blink 182 the band had so many elements to bring to the table musically. Vocalist, Alex Deleon, had a voice reminiscent of 90’s boy bands, but had a soulful twinge that flowed beautifully. He serenaded the ladies that stood in front and always put on a smile. The guitar solos brought on by Ian Crawford was also a crowd pleaser and just the all around sound was enough to make you want more. That being said, the band also did a cover of "Gone" by boy band NSYNC and literally, killed it. It sounded amazing and was probably the best cover I’ve heard in a while. The Cab is one band that can bring to each song a completely different sound from the one before it.
The Maine, in so many words, is catchy. That’s one word that can come to mind, for me, to describe them. With sound similar to bands like Boys Like Girls and Cute Is What We Aim For, they are a lot like most bands coming out in this day and age. I’m not bashing the boys, because honestly, they also put on a great show, but their music sounds similar to so many acts, and it’s hard to remember them for anything more than who they sound like.
Last, but certainly not least was headliner, We The Kings. Yet another set of Florida natives that blew my mind. The energy they had was amazing. The crowd was going wild with crowd surfer after crowd surfer going past the barricade. They, of course, played songs for their latest self titled release, but also brought some pretty memorable, and quite entertaining, covers. First cover of the night? Guitarist, Hunter Thomsen, along with a roadie, gave us a little taste of their hip hop side with a Lil Wayne cover that brought the crowd up and got them dancing around like mad. Next cover being that of The Killers hit, "Mr. Brightside", and it was beautifully done, if I do say so myself. Oh, but the covers don’t end there! Drummer, Danny Duncan wanted the whole crowd to join in on a song, and what better way to do it then do a small cover of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme? The last bit of cover songs for the night was the beginning of Jason Mraz’s hit, I’m Yours, which singer and guitarist, Travis Clark, brought out an acoustic guitar. As soon as he finished that cover, he went into the bands own, "This Is Our Town." The house lights went down and the whole place became illuminated by cell phone screens and cameras. It was an amazing thing to see. The night ended with the bands break out release, "Skyway Avenue" and it was over. Or so I thought.
I had spoken with Blake of VersaEmerge and he had mentioned that they were going to do a short acoustic set outside after the show. That they did, and again, I was blown away. What made this particular acoustic number memorable was the addition of a homeless man who was walking the street who joined in with Sierra as she sang along with fans. With that being said, one thing I can happily say about this tour is it is one that will go down in my book as one of the best tours of early 2009. I highly recommend anyone out there to check out the Secret Valentine Tour at a stop near you, because you will, in no way, be disappointed.
Written by: Sara Padilla
Posts
