Oh man, oh man. This was going to be thee show of the summer as far as I was concerned. As great as the Warped Tour is, it had nothing on four amazing bands in an intimate NYC club setting. I really like the personality, charm and sound of Wetlands, and given the fact that this event was sold-out and all of the bands flat out ruled, it was the complete incredible afternoon/evening. Hot damn.

At a few minutes after 4pm, RISE AGAINST showed up on stage to an eager, but fairly timid crowd. I had just interviewed the band about 30 minutes before their set, so needless to say, I was stoked! Armed with two members of the defunct 88 FINGERS LOUIE, the former drummer of PINHEAD CIRCUS (now doing vocal duties) and a sound akin to GOOD RIDDANCE and 7 SECONDS, but a tad more hardcore, I knew these guys would rule. Their set consisted almost entirely of songs from their debut album, “”The Unraveling,”" and their song from the most recent Fat Records compilation. There were only a handful of people who made it obvious they were into RISE AGAINST, but after the fourth or fifth song, the pit was showing signs of life, and the crowd began to give more signs of approval. I called it good when I knew they would start of their set with “”Alive and Well,”" perhaps one of the best of the new songs ever to ignite the passion of hardcore within the suspect youth. Tim’s the kind of singer who while always stays on stage, likes to get in your face as he keeps well positioned between the stage and crowd. This set was aided by one fan doing two handstands on stage and then diving into the crowd. Wooha.

Given the absolute rush and sudden success of THURSDAY, they could have headlined this show. I know the NY/NJ area is their stronghold and they were top dog of this show, even if BOY SETS FIRE played last. With the crowd packed in so tight that the bouncers could barely find room to put people, the atmosphere was highly caustic, waiting in anticipation to explode to the thunderous emocore that is THURSDAY. I found myself to the left of the stage pressed up against a barrier, which lasted all of two songs until the force gave way and I was flung into the RISE AGAINST drum set just put aside. Pinned between a cymbal and a floor tom, I was quickly rescued by a bouncer and tossed back into the crowd. Fortunate enough to survive this debacle, I was back in the fold in a jiffy, just in time to sing along to “”Standing on the Edge of Summer”" and my personal favorite, “”Autobiography of a Nation.”" I don’t even know where to start in explaining the momentum of THURSDAY’s set. It’s just downright insane. With the crowd knowing nearly every word (to an album that only came out 3 months ago), the eerie quiet parts were 10 times freakier, and the earth shattering breakdowns left people in ruins throughout. The band debuted the song “”How Long is the Night”" live for the first time and it was truly a special moment as Geoff went through its meaning quite extensively. With the crowd begging for one more tune, it was only that of “”Cross out the eyes,”" that would satisfy this expressed hunger. Mark my words, this band will be so big they will never know what him once the mainstream gets ahold of them. Savour it now you purists!

Speaking of getting big, the MOVIELIFE were up next. This set was a nice break from the heaviness of the prior two bands, however, the MOVIELIFE aren’t exactly lightweights. With their still fresh full length, “”This Time Next Year,”" THE MOVIELIFE ripped through almost the entire album only stopping once to play an old tune from their Fadeaway Records debut. These guys do a set right, never letting the music stop, nor plugging things up with endless bantering. They tore straight through 35 minutes without ever missing a beat or getting tired. Although the drums didn’t sound as huge as the previous bands, nor did the guitars, Vinny Carunna’s vocals were killer. He so carries the songs, it’s scary. After going through the crowd favorites, “”Another Friend,”" and “”SWF,”" THE MOVIELIFE debuted two new tunes to appear on an upcoming EP on Drive-Thru records. I thought both were pretty good, especially the first song and they show the band moving to even more poppier (but still hard and fast) direction. It’s always good to see bands that score big on cd and live and these guys rank high on the energy/interactivity meter. Sweeeeeet.

Considering that I’ve seen BOY SETS FIRE four times now since “”After the Eulogy”" first come out, I wasn’t expecting much different. Fortunately, the band played one new song from their upcoming untitled full length (on Wind-Up Entertainment) called “”White Wedding Dress,”" about domestic violence from the perspective of women being prosecuted as criminals for striking back against their abusive husbands or boyfriends. It was a chilling, melodic and deep song (as expected) but covered some more territory musically than most of this band’s prior work. There was only one song from “”The Day the Sun Went Out,”" the infamous “”Toy Gun Anthem,”" which never fails to set the crowd absolutely afire. Tearing through such hits as “”After the Eulogy,”" “”Pure,”" “”My life in the Knife Trade,”" “”Still Waiting for the Punchline,”" “”Unspoken Request,”" and the moumental “”Rookie,”" the Wetlands became an entire “”wave of mosh”" for a good 30 feet across and wide. Just like THURSDAY, BOY SETS FIRE knew the crowd was waiting for the clincher of the evening, “”The Force Majeur”" – appropriately titled as ever. As I saw my buddy Dave land himself on stage and thus dive back into the rapid moving crowd, all hell broke lose as the breakdowns wouldn’t cease.

What a show! I left this one tired, sore, and slightly bruised. I guess that’s what a cymbal can do to you when you hug it unexpectedly. After a brief nap on the trainride home, I felt more full of energy than before the show started. Rejuvenation in the name of hardcore – it’s a blessed thing.