Finally, a killer hardcore show at the Church. I don’t necessarily mind the emo/pop shows, or the ska/punk shows at the church, but nothing gets me more pumped up than a raging mosh fest at St. Andrew’s. It’s such a good venue for wickedly heavy music, and there’s always a good crowd to keep things going. Before I get started, DROWNINGMAN did in fact play this show, however, BOY SETS FIRE told everyone that DROWNINGMAN did not show up – whether they were lying (horrible, horrible joke), or just that the band showed up very late (their merch was their the entire time), many people, including myself left before they played. Arrrrrrg!!!! Fortunately, the first three bands were flat out amazing, and BOY SETS FIRE played one of the best sets that I’ve ever witnessed.

WHAT LIES AHEAD opened this show up, and I was highly impressed with what I heard. The last time I saw them was last March at the late Phantasmagoria (with GREY AREA), and at that time, they were straight-up youth crew. A year later, WHAT LIES AHEAD has morphed into a very tight unit playing dynamic hardcore with many timing changes and a heavier overall feel. Their sound could be comparable to the most recent STRAIGHT FACED release, or maybe a less crunchy SNAPCASE. Their musical skill was pretty stunning – especially for an opener, and they had a madman behind the skins. My only complaint was that the vocals didn’t quite mesh too well with the music. Their singer shifted from a poppier sound (a la Zoli from IGNITE) to a gruff Ray Cappo imitation. While that band didn’t quite succeed in getting many people on the dance floor, I think many people in the crowd were rather impressed with watching the band do their work. I’d definitely want to see these guys again!

Personally, the band I was most anxious to see tonight was the HOPE CONSPIRACY. I missed their previous performance at the Church last Spring, and I’ve been playing the crap out of their debut disc, “”Cold Blue”" (that’s a must own – trust me!). The HOPE CONSPIRACY play ultra heavy hardcore with exceptional scream along vocals that are, believe it or not, highly discipherable. Most of their songs end around the 2 minute mark, and there’s always a great mosh part lurking in the background. After the first chord was struck, a massive pit scene opened up and bodies bounced around everywhere. I was not quite in the mood to risk my life, so I stayed as close to the stage as possible without enduring any severe bodily harm. You could feel the energy radiate off the peole around me (I think I could smell it too!). All of the songs played were off their full length, and although they barely eclipsed the 20 minute set mark, they packed one hell of a punch. Their vocalist has amazing stage presence and command over the crowd. It was awesome to see so many people singing along and letting it all out to a relatively new band. Wooha!

I’ve seen BOY SETS FIRE twice before, once at the Maryland Food Co-Op, and then at the Nation, neither which were fabulous venues for a band with such an emotional, yet devastating sound. Thankfully, the Church created just the right kind of atmosphere to allow their music to take on a spirit of its own. Surprisingly, the band started their set with “”The Force Majeur,”" and from their, went on to play mostly stuff off of “”The Day the Sun Went Out,”" including the ripper, “”Toy Gun Anthem.”" One of the largest pits ever at St. Andrew’s opened up, spanning a good 25 feet long. It was hard to not get swept up into the turmoil, and on more than a few occaisons, I found myself blocking my face from the errant elbow or sneaker. Songs like “”Our Time Honored Tradition of Cannibalism,”" “”Pure,”" “”Cringe,”" and “”The abominations of those virtuous,”" sounded thunderous. I was really hoping they’d play, “”Compassion as skull fragments on the wall,”" but of course, they never play that one. BOY SETS FIRE played one new song, entitled, “”Eviction Notice,”" and it was super heavy and political as always. The crowd really got into “”My Life in the Knife Trade,”" and my buddy Kevin (from punkrocks.net) remarked, “”they’d be huge if everyone of their songs was as catchy as that.”" I was getting nervous for awhile, because they had yet to play “”After the Eulogy,”" but that was how they closed their set and man oh man, that was a doozy! I just love the ending where it goes “”tear it down!!”" I know many people don’t care for this band because of their pro-active lyrics, or allegedly hypocritical business stances, but ya know what – fuck that! Their music has a message, and they most definitely have the power and skills to back it up. A set to remember for years to come.