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Posts Tagged ‘We the Kings’

  1. We the King’s New Release Smile Kid

    January 8, 2010 by Jackie

    When you put together Travis Clark (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano), Hunter Thomsen (lead guitar and backing vocals), Drew Thomsen (bass guitar, backing vocals) and Dan Duncan (drums, percussion), you have a band called We the Kings from Bradenton, Florida.

    The name Smile Kid is a line that comes not from a title song but rather from the fourth track on the album, “The Story of Your Life.” I’m not sure a story of my life would coalesce into a song that sounds like We The King’s version, but nonetheless, it can’t be denied that it is a catchy tune.

    Next on the list is “In-N-Out (Animal Style),” a song that probably has some sort of sexual double entendre but after I read the title, I was too busy driving to my friendly neighborhood In-N-Out for a cheeseburger to notice the song’s potential deep-seated meaning.

    The next song in the repertoire is “We’ll Be a Dream,” featuring Demi Lovato (aka one of Disney’s over-promoted tween stars). I think that’s all that really needs to be said about that one.

    As I continued to listen to the album, I found myself thinking “hmm, quite a few of these songs sound oddly like something that once played in the background on an episode of  ‘The Hills.’ This thought turned out to be quite ironic because their song “Check Yes Juliet” (not on Smile Kid) was in fact, in an episode of said show. That’s not to say good music can never come from an MTV reality show, but in my esteemed opinion as a music writer, it rarely gives an album or song any brownie points.

    I suppose now is as good a time as any to mention my distaste for albums that put acoustic versions of earlier songs on the album at the end. Maybe I’m cheap, maybe I’m picky, but having the same song twice on any album, in any capacity just feels like a rip off to me. I want to get my $10 worth and have every song be new and original (even though “big” bands like Coldplay have even pulled this shtick before).

    Smile Kid is what I like to call a good “summer album” with an “infectious pop sound” (and not just because there’s a song on the album with the word “summer” in it). What is a “summer album?” Well, based on my own personal definition, such an album is one that is a) terribly catchy b) can be played ultra-loud from any form of vehicle with the windows rolled down, c) though it qualifies for point “a” and “b,” you never really listen to the lyrics or what the songs themselves are about d) after coming to terms with “c,” you bob your head and tap your fingers accordingly.

    I would not say the album was my least favorite of all time. It’s catchy and found myself tapping my foot along to the beat on more than one track, I was just faced with mounting skepticism as I continued my listening party. If any song you ever produced at any time appears in an MTV reality show about spoiled Los Angeles-based celebrity-wannabes, combined with having a well-paid Disney actress appear on one of your songs, that unfortunately does not scream “serious band!” for me. Instead, it screams “we want to be famous!” a little too much for my taste which sadly ruined my enjoyment of the majority of this album and of the band in general.

    Rating: (1.5/5)


  2. Warped Tour Los Angeles 2009

    September 6, 2009 by Steph

    The MaineAll of Catharine Acurso’s photos can be found here

    Interviews, Round 1! can he found here. More coming soon…

    The day started off with some downtime so photographer Catharine and I headed out to a few bands that we might have otherwise skipped over. The Maine’s audience was filled with screaming girls jumping and singing to songs like “Everything I Ask For” and “I Must Be Dreaming.” It was already scorching hot, yet it didn’t seem to effect anyone’s excitement for the band. The Maine’s music was perfect for the weather—summer songs that only made me wish I had a popsicle. They closed out the set with a cover of Dead Leopard’s “Pour Some Sugar On Me” with a funky bass line and heavy drums.We the Kings, photo by Catharine Acurso

    We stopped off for a brief glance at a couple of bands. The first: We the Kings. Catharine grabbed a couple of shots of the band while I hung in the back to tell people about the site. The band sang their hearts out to their songs “Whoa” and “Secret Valentine” (a song frontman Travis claims is “entirely about sexual intercourse” so he shouts for the crowd to have intercourse.)

    On the way back, we caught a bit of Saosin. The fans were crazy and the bass was pumping so loud I could feel it across the blacktop. Tons of crowd surfers were up for “Voices” and it seemed pretty intense.

    Forever the Sickest Kids, photo by Catharine AcursoInstead of joining the crowd, we decided to head over to see You Me At Six sing for their hot, sweaty pop punk set. With heavy bass, rock distortion, and hangovers from the night before, You Me at Six played “Finders Keepers” to a huge crowd—much bigger than I saw the rest of the day at the Kevin Says stage.

    Forever the Sickest Kids was, as always, a huge, fun, sweaty dance party.  Jumping right in with “Hey Brittany,” the guys told the crowd that Los Angeles is their favorite city outside of Dallas (their hometown) and encouraged the kids to make the crowd look as if its on a trampoline (essentially jump as high as they possibly can). After playing the crowd against each other as “side good-looking versus side better-looking” and “boys versus girls” they jammed out upbeat renditions of “Believe Me I’m Lying” and “She’s a Lady.”

    The next band was one I hadn’t heard before, but caught my ear. Single File from Denver, Colorado had vocals similar to Max Beemis of say anything, but their pop punk style was all their own.  They played their songs “September Skyline” and “Velcro” while one of the guys encouraged fans to come meet them at their tent after and the other to “pat him on the butt. He likes butt stuff.”

    This Providence, photo by Catharine AcursoThis Providence from Seattle (with accents that might suggest otherwise?) were the next band we checked out on the Kevin Says stage. If it’s possible to shred with a tambourine, This Providence did just that. In “Playing the Villian,” the lyrics are viscous: “I hate who you’ve become, I don’t know you anymore.” You’d never know so much rock came from men with such baby faces. Everyone clapped along to “That Girl’s a Trick” and everyone shouted the lyrics to “Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing” with their hands in the air.

    All Time Low, photo by Catharine AcursoAs the sun started to set, the bands only kept getting better. All Time Low hit the stage to “I’m getting fucked up…lets get drunk.” The ATL crew kicked off their set with their newest single “Weightless”  jetting quickly into their foul mouth antics: “This is not a g-d damn concert, it’s a revolution… filled with dicks and titties, blood and sweat and tears… and cats that I hit in my car on the way to work… which is not true because I’ve never had a job in my life.” They played all their favorites—“Jasey Rae,” “Poppin’ Champagne” (with a rock thrash interlude), “Lost in Stereo” (off their newest release Nothing Personal), and “Six Feet Under the Stars.” Someone threw a pair of boxers on stage dripping with sweat and later Alex yelled that we all needed to get “a little more naked.” All ages of women (and men in women’s pants) were singing along to the poppy pop punk hooligans.

    And now for my favorite part of the day: A Day to Remember. A band I’ve recently fallen in love A Day to Remember, photo by Catharinewith, ADTR’s set quickly stole my heart. Super high energy and a sea of moshing and fist throwing. The air seemed to cool down just in time for the set so that we could mosh especially hard. The guys on stage seemed so genuine and earnest. The band shouted from the stage that “LA has been here from the start.” They sang an equal number of songs from their newest release Homesick and older songs like “I’m Made of Wax, Larry, What Are You Made Of?” and “Show ‘em the Ropes” with intense lyrics and even more intense guitar shredding. I felt the music through the crowd and it was a great feeling.

    Watching Bayside is always like being in on one dark joke about yourself. It takes a true Bayside fan to shout at full volume back at Anthony, “I swear I can’t stand this place and what’s becoming of me the longer I have to stay.” Bayside’s lyrics are self-deprecating, but far from defeatist. The rebellious attitude comes out through shredding guitar solos and bass that make fists fly. This is what made Bayside’s set so exciting to watch. Most fans in the crowd knew every word and were yelling them with their rock faces on. The band played a good mix of their two Bayside, photo by Catharine Acursomost recent releases Shudder and The Walking Wounded and a few of some oldies. “Devotion and Desire” set the mood for the set as Anthony’s smooth vocals wailed “I know the spark inside your eyes was just the match I use to set myself on fire.” Playing other favorites like “The Walking Wounded,” “Carry On,” and “Head On a Plate” caused the few who weren’t singing along to mosh in a circle pit.

    Hit the Light’s style always surprises me a little. The guys look pretty tough—the lead singer is a white dude with a shaved head and looks like he could lift me over his head—but their style is more pop than punk and some of their songs even have a dance beat. They hit the stage to Christina Millian’s “A.M. to P.M.” (“Somebody hit the lights so we can rock it day and night”) and then some pretty hardcore screams came out of frontman Nick. I was surprised at the amount of moshing to songs like “Breathe In” and “Back Breaker” (although to be fair, “Back Breaker” has some heavy breakdowns and screaming). They remind me a bit of New Found Glory if not for the style and high energy, then for the way they command the crowd. Hit the Lights played “309” per request of a couple of screaming fans and closed their set with their popular “Drop the Girl” and a hardcore cover.

    We briefly checked out Meg & Dia before heading over to 3Oh!3. They sound exactly how you would expect two 5 foot 120 lb girls to sound—high pitched and sweet. We didn’t stay for my favorite song of their’s, “Monster,” but their funky groove on “Going Away” was pretty cool.

    3Oh!3, photo by Catharine AcursoIt’s rare that I stay till the end of the day at Warped Tour but this year it seemed as though over half the attendees had the same reason to stay–3Oh!3. 3Oh!3 has managed to confuse people into liking them. Not that their music isn’t awesome, but they defy categorization and therefore manage to cross over some thought-to-be impenetrable divides.

    – Are they serious or are they making one big joke?

    – Are they rock or hip hop? Or something else entirely?

    The last performance at the last warped tour date of its 15th year, a couple thousand people stuck around not to discuss what 3Oh!3 means, but to raise their “3O3” hands and shake their booties, mosh, and crowd surf. From “Punkbitch” to “Rich Man”  to “Colorado Sunrise” to some new material, there were hardcore 15-year-old boys moshing alongside preppy 18-year-old sorority girls dancing next to some metal dudes. The two white guys on stage doing choreographed “crump” dancing singing “Choke Chain” to heavy guitar and three drum sets (they invited a couple of guest musicians) seemed odd, but fun. It didn’t make sense, but maybe that’s why everyone loves it so much. Myself included.

    At the end of the day, Warped Tour’s 15th anniversary was pretty successful.  Lots of great bands, some I heard for the first time, some I saw live for the first time. I came home with a bunch of posters, a backpack full of flyers, and a tape recorder full of interviews…


  3. The Academy Is… on Bill and Trav’s Bogus Tour

    November 11, 2008 by Cassie

    The Bill and Trav’s Bogus Journey Tour was a tour a lot of people were definitely stoked on. With opening spots given to Hey Monday, Carolina Liar, We The Kings, and headlining going to The Academy Is…, there was a good sampling of good old pop alternative at this show. Coming in, I had only thoroughly listened to was The Academy Is… but I was excited anyway because they are definitely one of my favorites.

    My show-buddy and I pull up to the House of Blues, Sunset Strip just in time for the doors to open. There was a pretty impressive line but things seemed pretty calm until someone yelled “Cassadee!” and there was some screaming and carrying on. It wasn’t until later that I realized this was the singer from Hey Monday.

    I couldn’t have been more excited for Hey Monday to come on because it’s pretty rare that you hear a rock band with a female singer. As they started their first song, Josey, I realized I had seen a band like this before…I felt like I was staring at the brunette version of Haley Williams from Paramore. Even her mannerisms on stage were similar. Let me just clarify, there is nothing wrong with looking or sounding like Haley Williams. I am a huge fan of Paramore, but I felt like it was nothing new. One treat during the set was when William Beckett came out and performed during Hey Monday’s “Homecoming”. It seemed as if they were really enjoying themselves and I, in turn, enjoyed myself. Just goes to show that if you look like you’re having fun up there with your band mates, the crowd will have fun too.
    Cassadee whipped out an acoustic guitar for the beginning of “Candles” and the crowd was impressed with her abilities for sure—the guys next to me trying to act cool in the back even perked up a little.

    While I feel like Hey Monday on stage resembles Paramore a lot, I don’t necessarily think there’s anything wrong with that. Both are perfectly respectable bands. I enjoyed watching Hey Monday on stage and I would definitely seem them again.

    Considering the other bands on the tour, Carolina Liar was absolutely not what I expected as far as image. They were long-haired, cowboy boot-wearing, guys who reminded me of Kid Rock. I didn’t know what to expect from the performance. I was actually pleasantly surprised. I was impressed when the vocals were super clear too, actually reminding me of Brandon Flowers from the Killers at some points. Usually I can’t tell what a band is singing unless I already know the words, and this was a different story.

    One song they played, “Show Me What I’m Looking For” was introduced as a song for anyone who is confused. I was also impressed with “Coming to Terms”, a tragic song about lost love. The fact that not all their music sounded the same is something I admired immensely. They gave me something to be surprised about. They finished their set off with “I’m Not Over”, a song that more people knew due to it’s exposure on MTV and Vh1. It is definitely a fun song with a very catchy chorus that people can sing along to and a great way to end the set.

    Although I must admit I wasn’t looking forward to We The Kings due to their what seemed like overly-fanatical fan base at Warped Tour this year, they put on a pretty good show. No matter how hard I tried to contain myself, I found my head bobbing during most songs and doing a little dancing of my own. You could definitely tell this band was well-liked by the crowd due to the amount of teenage girls swooning and asking the band members to marry them…very entertaining but not for the faint of heart.

    They opened with “Stay Young” which was a fun, poppy song that really got the crowd going. They also included a cover of the Gorillaz “Feel Good, Inc.” to a crowd of mostly confused individuals. I, on the other hand, was quite excited. Some other well-known songs they played were “Skyway Avenue” and the closing song, “Check Yes Juliet”. I must admit, We The Kings put on an entertaining show, jumping around the stage and being crazy.

    By the time The Academy Is… came on, I was pumped. The way that William Beckett, the lead singer, struts around the stage gets me every time. They started off the set with “Summer Hair = Forever Young”, a release off their newest album Fast Times at Barrington High to get the crowd going.


    I was very impressed with the way they mixed up old and new songs. It was a fear of mine that we wouldn’t get to hear anything from their first release Almost Here but I my fears were calmed with “Slow Down”, “Checkmarks”, “Classifieds”, “The Phrase That Pays”, and more. In addition to the faster, dance-y songs they played, William played an acoustic guitar for “The Test”, which was absolutely amazing, as I think it’s one of the less-known songs off the new album.

    Several times during the set, William decided it would be a good idea to get on the barricade and let all the fans grope him. Whether that’s your bag or not, try to avoid getting caught up in the current if you go see them. Chaos will ensue. Even so, the amount of talent these guys have is even amazing live. If you haven’t ever seen them live, do it now; the tour continues until late November.

    -Cassie

    *More photos available in our Myspace albums


  4. 2008 Warped Tour, Los Angeles. Photo + Interviews + Reviews!

    August 22, 2008 by Steph

    11:15 The Academy Is…

    12:05 We the Kings

    –Interviews with All Time Low, Forever the Sickest Kids, and The Academy Is… available on our iTunes Podcast

    3:15 ORESKABAND

    3:55 Forever the Sickest Kids

    4:20 All Time Low

    5:45 Relient K

    6:45 Say Anything

    7:00 Four Year Strong

    7:15 Katy Perry

    7:45 Angeles and Airwaves

    8:15 Gym Class Heroes

    We managed to arrive just in time to check in at the press tent, sign up for interviews, and make it back over to main stages to catch The Academy Is… go on first thing in the morning.  They opened with “Neighbors” to an unusually mellow and stagnant crowd.  The played some classics—”Slow Down” and “Classifieds”—mixed in with their new singles released this past Tuesday on Fast Times at Barrington High—”Summer Hair” and “About a Girl.”  These new summer anthems were perfect for getting started a long hot day at Warped Tour.

    We the Kings were the next act of (moderate) interest and we sauntered over there to catch a few pictures and a few songs.  They sounded like Boys Like Girls with more elementary lyrics and less catchy hooks.  “Cause if you jump I will jump too.  We will fall together from the building’s ledge never looking back at what we’ve done.  we’ll say it was love cause I would die for you” is cliché emo through and through.  As we walked away, we heard Travis Clark, lead vocals, tell the crowd to “spread the love” about their new album.  So if you consider the album “love” you have Travis’ permission to share it.

    Back over in the press tent, we waited around for our interviews.  They all went amazing and we ended up getting even more than we hoped for – All Time Low followed by Forever the Sickest Kids and The Academy Is… with Charlotte Sometimes later on in the day.  You can listen to all of these interviews on iTunes  – Addicted to Shows Podcast .

    After a couple of hours in the press tent, skipping way too many good sets, we caught ORESKABAND’s set.  They’re an all-girl ska band from Japan and they RULE!  Aside from them being adorable and bursting with anime-like bubbly excitement, they kick ass as a very legit group of musicians.  They shouted for us to sing along (which was a little hard since I think most of us don’t know Japanese) but the oo’s and ahh’s were definite sing-along, skank-along material and they put on an altogether fun set.

    Forever the Sickest Kid’s set was almost as good as their set at Warped Tour in Pomona—full of dancing, moshing, and sweatiness.  Their music really has this great energy and fun about it that it’s impossible not to get excited about it.  Songs like single “Whoa Oh!” and “She’s a Lady” got the entire crowd moving and a constant launch of crowd surfers.  I can’t possibly give the Kids more praise than I already have in previous reviews so I’ll quit while I’m ahead.  LOVE.

    The closer we got to the Hurley stage, the more dense the crowd got until we finally reached the staging area overflowing with kids—the ones farther out were observant, the ones closer in ready to get their effin’ dance on!  Some of the younger more novice kiddos weren’t quite prepared for what was about to go down – lots of people falling, crowd surfers falling through, and people upset about losing sandals (please don’t wear sandals to a show).  All Time Low’s set was fun, energetic, and definitely dance-worthy.  There was a dancy, sweaty mix out there on that black top with even a little bit of circle-pit action which is great to see at Warped Tour.  They played Poppin’ Champagne (without the bleeping.  Take that, MTV!), Six Feet Under The Stars and the rest of their fun, sing-along teenage anthems.  Fun, sweaty times.

    Heading over to the main stages, we were up front and ready for Relient K.  Where were all the die-hards?  I only saw people mouthing (not even singing) along for a few of the more recent releases.  But the crowd was in no way a reflection of their performance.  Matt gracefully floated between the piano and his guitar amidst xylophone-littered pop rock melodies with fantastic harmonies.

    Totally contrary to their normal rock genre, they busted out Kanye’s “Good Life” followed by their “The Best Thing.”  Off their new The Bird and the B-Sides (with 13 new and 13 old songs) they played “The Scene and the Herd” which sounded more Mhmm than Five Score.  Matt sang, “I see you magically got this song for free… Doesn’t bother me.  I’m gonna sing what I want.  It might not be what you want to hear.” which seems appropriate because Relient K has always done exactly what they wanted to, from the contemplative Five Score to the playful “Sadie Hawkins” which they played next (although Matt admits to be sick of it, it’s still a crowd favorite).  They segued their silliness into a song about The Office and then got a little more serious with “Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been” and promotion of the charity Blood, Water, Mission.  They ended with “I Need You” – heavy and buck! Haha.

    We stuck around to try to split the next half hour between Say Anything and Four Year Strong but Rise Against made Say Anything start late and I was only able to see one of Say Anything’s songs – “Alive With the Glory of Love.” They had good energy, great vocals and a crisp sound that drew a huge crowd.  Fans had sat there through the last 4 sets just to get a good spot for them.  Dedication, and for a good reason.

    Hustling over to Four Year Strong, I caught the set mid-first-song.  This set… FANTASTIC.  They have the fun and energy of Forever the Sickest Kids and the heaviness of Set Your Goals creating this fun, dancey, head-banging, moshing monster.  There isn’t enough praise I can give Four Year Strong.  And their straddling between hardcore and powerpop-rock allows them to appeal to just about anyone – you WILL like them.

    They played my favorites off their album Rise or Dye Trying – “Prepare To Be Digitally Manipulated,” “Catastrophe,” “Abandon Ship Or Abandon All Hope,” and “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Hell.”  Listen.  Now.

    Katy Perry was on the stage just to the left and we caught a few of her songs.  While I have to admit a guilty pleasure for the beat of “I Kissed a Girl” and her music is pretty great to play at a party, having to stand and watch Katy shake her booty around the stage was only mildly entertaining and probably more suitable for a male audience.  I caught “One of the Boys,” “If You Can Afford Me,” and “Hot n’ Cold.”  Impatient for cherry chap stick and “Ur So Gay” I decided to find our M.I.A. photographer.

    Unable to find Catharine, I ended up shooting Angels and Airwaves with my camera.  Being up front and center for Tom Delong & band was really incredible.  Him and former band Blink-182 probably influenced over half the bands on Warped Tour 2008.  Their sound is so epic and inspiring.  The fans were so into it they were practically climbing over the barricade in hypnotized enthusiasm.  While this (not really that) new direction for Tom is exciting, it can be a little strange for all us Blink fans to see Tom so serious.  Just for us, Tom threw in a “fuck, shit, poo poo, pee pee” for us before submerging into a personal favorite “It Hurts” and closing the set with the single off their first release “The Adventure.”

    Gym Class Heroes closed out the night, walking on stage to “End of the Road” which is pretty appropriate – the last act on the last date of Warped Tour.  A little sad… but they picked up the mood immediately with the obvious crowd-pleaser “Clothes Off” which brought on dancing and singing along.  Travis announced that their the successor to As Cruel As School Children is called The Quill and will be released September 9th.

    Off their new album they played a song with a chorus “Put up your peace sign, put your index down” and then their School Children slow jam “Viva la White Girl.”  To introduce their new fans to their excellent first release The Papercut Chronicles, they played a medley of “Simple Livin'” and “Taxi Cab” (my favorite).  Stealing a note out of Relient K’s book (or maybe the other way around) they busted out an amazingly clean rendition of metal band Lamb of God’s “Laid to Rest.”  They closed out the night, and the Warped Tour, with “Cupid’s Chokehold” with Katy Perry, Forever the Sickest Kids, and a female bunny costume on stage with them.

    2008 Warped Tour finished in Los Angeles after another long summer out on the road.  Some bands we got to see for a second time and some picked up somewhere in the middle and helped close it off.  Some bands we missed completely (sorry about that).  But this year was great and it was awesome to be able to see some new favorites on the stage for the first time.  If you guys don’t take anything else from this, I hope that you listen to our interviews and listen to FOUR YEAR STRONG.

    There are a ton more photos on myspace.com/addictedtoshows including other bands not included:  Cobra Starship and Ludo.  Check them out!

    Stay Saavy,
    Steph@A2S

    Photos by Catharine Acurso