Teppei Teranishi of Thrice performing at City National Civic in San Jose, CA. November 2, 2017. Photo Credit: Jared Stossel
Thrice
Circa Survive
w/ Chon, Balance & Composure
City National Civic
San Jose, CA
November 2, 2017
Photos and review by Jared Stossel.
This is one of those tours that, when you see the lineup, you know that it just works, from openers to headliners. The kickoff date of Thrice and Circa Survive's monumental co-headlining tour was last night in San Jose, CA at the City National Civic auditorium. For a week night, the place was rather packed far beyond what I had anticipated to see. This honestly made me very happy, because it demonstrates that bands like this still have the power to draw people out and stay until 11:30 (around the time that Thrice concluding their headlining set), despite have work early the next morning.
Support for this tour was provided by two incredibly well-selected acts: the alternative/grunge hybrid five-piece known as Balance and Composure, and the four-piece all-instrumental Chon. I've heard about each of these bands for a number of years now, and it was great to see them all together in one place. Starting with Balance and Composure, I can't help but note how eerily similar it felt to what I could only assume it would be like to watch a band like Nirvana. Their music doesn't remind me of listening to an album like Nevermind, but it's an experience to watch a band like them. A vast array of influences find their way into the tracks of a band like Balance and Composure, mixing indie, traditional emo, grunge and alternative together to make for an interesting result. Chon reinforced the notion that the art of instrumental-only music is very much alive and well, bringing forth a show that I couldn't even begin to a describe a genre to fit if you asked me. The San Diego four-piece played with an incredible amount of precision and focus, while simultaneously dialing just the right amount of chaos.
Circa Survive's stage flooded with strobe lights as charismatic frontman Anthony Green thrashed straight into "Rites of Investiture", the first track from the five-piece band's immaculate new record, The Amulet (released earlier this year via Equal Vision Records). The best part of seeing a live Circa Survive performance is not only Green's ability to command an entire audience and draw them into the world they're creating; it's the band's musicianship. The instrumental portion of Circa is made up of lead guitarist Brendan Ekstrom, guitarist Colin Frangicetto, bassist Nick Beard, and drummer Steve Clifford. There are so many elements to Circa Survive's music that sometimes it can be hard to take it all in at once, but their live show immerses you in music like no other. With material coming from The Amulet, in addition to fan favorite records like Juturna and Blue Sky Noise, it's impossible not to find yourself mesmerized by the five musicians up on stage at some point during the night.
Thrice hit the stage for their set around 10 PM, and waste no time by getting straight into nostalgia, opening with "The Earth Will Shake", an immensely powerful choice for an opener from their fourth studio album Vheissu. It's followed almost immediately by "The Window" from their most recent work To Be Everywhere Is To Be Nowhere, before a quick guitar change and straight into The Artist In The Ambulance, providing a moment where the audience truly demonstrates that they know the words, screaming the second verse back to vocalist Dustin Kensrue as if they've been waiting their whole lives for the opportunity.
"Ten years ago, we released a series of albums called The Alchemy Index," Kensrue noted to the audience as they cheered in excitement. After giving a little bit of background on the records, the band chose one song from each of the four volumes (Fire, Water, Air, Earth) and played them back to back in honor of the collection's anniversary. While a number of tracks came from To Be Everywhere Is To Be Nowhere, Thrice impressively pulled tracks from eight of their nine studio albums (sorry, Identity Crisis, fans) and constructed an incredibly well-rounded set list. What I stated about Circa Survive earlier in regards to musicianship is absolutely true for Thrice as well. Vocalist/guitarist Kensrue, guitarist Teppei Teranishi, bassist Eddie Breckenridge, and drummer Riley Breckenridge are meticulously crafted unit of musicians, having been together since their inception in the late 90s.
A tour with both of these bands only makes perfect sense, and the inclusion of acts like Balance and Composure and Chon as openers is a no brainer, making this one of the fall's not-to-be-missed tours.
Thrice Set List
The Earth Will Shake
The Window
The Artist in the Ambulance
Hurricane
Blood on the Sand
Deadbolt
Silhouette
Firebreather
Open Water
Broken Lungs
Come All You Weary
Red Telephone (Live Premiere)
Black Honey
Circles
Blur
Of Dust and Nations
The Long Defeat
Circa Survive Set List
Rites of Investiture
Glass Arrows
The Glorious Nosebleed
Child of the Desert
Lustration
Strange Terrain
Sharp Practice
Tunnel Vision
In Fear and Faith
Stop the Fuckin' Car
Premonition of the Hex
The Difference Between Medicine and Poison Is in the Dose
Frozen Creek
The Amulet
Get Out
Thrice
www.thrice.net
www.facebook.com/officialthrice
@Thrice
Circa Survive
www.circasurvive.com
www.facebook.com/CircaSurvive
@circasurvive
Chon
www.chonhomey.com
www.facebook.com/musicofchon
@CHONofficial
Balance and Composure
www.lightwemade.com
www.facebook.com/balanceandcomposure
This has been another Shameless Promotion.