The second Movielife show that I was photographing was in Philadephia, PA at the new Fillmore. Unfortunately, due to traffic, I missed the first opener Dryjacket. I was excited to see this band because from what I heard, I enjoyed, but maybe next time I will get to catch their set. I did get a chance to photograph Have Mercy. Newly signed to Hopeless Records, Have Mercy have a similar sound to bands like The Early November and Say Anything. Their live show was nothing less than stellar. The emotion that pours out of Brian Swindle while singing only makes sense why this band is gaining a big following. So much so that you are expected to see them as direct support for Motion City Soundtrack’s farewell tour. I hope I can jump on one of those shows to see this band again.
https://havemercy.bandcamp.com/
The Movielife took the stage next. The feel for this show was a little different since there was a barricade up, but that didn’t stop the guys in The Movielife from still putting on a high energy show like the New York show. Lead singer Vinnie Caruana admitted to being sick, but he still moved around as if he was feeling just fine. It didn’t come to light that he was sick until he missed some lyrics on “Hey”, but after the song he admitted he skipped some words due to the medicine he was taking. The Movielife’s set was similar to the New York show with “Sailor Tattoos” being played as a full band, wish that version will be released, and the crowd is starting to warm up to “Future Feeling (Afraid Of Drugs)”. After this little run, The Movielife will go overseas and then the future only knows what’s next. Maybe some new songs or more shows, all we can hope is that The Movielife is here to stay.
Ending the night was The Early November. Philadelphia is like a second home for the band and this was a good homecoming show for them. Even though their set was short, The Early November played a good amount of songs off all their albums. It’s been a while for the band to be on stage together and their stage presence the most energetic I’ve seen. Ace’s vocals also sounded better than ever. He is starting to have a more gruff sounding voice as the band ages and this is a good thing. However, when he needs to belt the ballads like “Ever So Sweet”, he can still hit the vocal range on those songs. If this show is any indicator as to how The Early November will sound live going forward, I expect them to steal the show this summer on the Taste Of Chaos tour.
https://www.facebook.com/earlynovember/
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