Hump Day is the hardest day of the week to get through; luckily The Get Free Tour graced the stage of Irving Plaza. Tonight Alive and Silverstein’s energetic performances gave the audience a boost to make it through the rest of the week with a smile.
When Jenna McDougall, lead singer of Tonight Alive, stepped onto the stage, the audience came to life. McDougall repped Def Leppard by wearing an oversized band shirt with bell sleeves safety pinned on. Wearing safety pins is a way to show solidarity for marginalized groups and is also a cornerstone for the punk rock DIY mentality. McDougall encouraged the audience to self-advocate and stand up and fight for what they believe in, the main message of The Get Free Tour.
It’s evident that Tonight Alive genuinely loves what they do. McDougall stopped several times to enjoy the moment, encourage the audience to sing along and take selfies with the crowd. Tonight Alive was very animated during their set; McDougall danced around stage with a smile on her face as the audience sang back every word she belted out. McDougall’s vocals were solid the entire set, especially during an acoustic version of the song “Oxygen”. Tonight Alive played a mix of songs, which made both old and new fans happy including “The Ocean”, “How Does It Feel”, “Lonely Girl”, “Disappear”, “Temple”, and “The Edge”. Move over Paramore, Tonight Alive has taken the female-fronted throne on the scene.
Silverstein hit the stage at 10pm, a time most people are home watching Neflix and chilling mid week. Even though they had a late set time, Silverstein hit the stage at 100 percent. Shane Told, the lead singer for Silverstein, told the audience not to fear, they will always play old songs because they love them and got them where they are today. Some of the older songs they played included “Bleeds no More”, “Smashed into Pieces”, “Discovering the Waterfront” and “My Heroine”.
Guitarists Paul Marc Rousseau and Josh Bradford entertained the audience with their playful antics on stage, something they definitely learned from touring with Gwar on the Vans Warped Tour. Paul Marc Rousseau channeled his inner Billy Joel and sang and played the keyboard to “Arrivals” while the rest of the band took a quick break to grab 40oz cans of Bud Light before the next song.
If you missed this show don’t fret, Silverstein and Tonight Alive will be performing on The Vans Warped Tour this summer. Long Island mark your calendars, the Vans Warped Tour is stopping at Northwell Health at Jones Beach Amphitheatre Saturday, July 28th, 2018.
