There is no better way to start the weekend than to head down to your favourite venue and dance along to the music of three great bands, followed by some emo karaoke on your way to the exit. That’s exactly what was in store for everyone coming to Dynamo in Eindhoven for the co-headline show of Rain City Drive and Honey Revenge on January 23rd. With them, they brought along Belmont to kick off the evening.
About half an hour after the doors opened, it was time for Belmont to get the room moving. With their pop-punk sound layered with some heavier vocals and kicking legs, they sure knew how to get the crowd warmed up. Vocalist Taz Johnson was moving around the stage like a whirlwind, using up all the space the stage had to offer. Unfortunately, the sound was not mixed very well, making the crowd mostly hear the drums and bass, and not so clearly Johnson’s vocals. On stage with him were drummer Brian Lada, guitarist Jason Inguagiato, and bassist Alex Coslow. Their set included songs such as ‘731’ and ‘Day By Day’. For ‘4am // Disappear’, Coslow left the stage for the first half of the song. With the lack of bass, Johnson’s vocals could be heard more clearly for the first time this evening. Before kicking off into the next song, Johnson made everyone put their finger in the air and point towards the exit, telling them that their merch can be found there. They ended their set with ‘Liminal’ and ‘Overstepping’.
Up next was the colourful Honey Revenge. Guitarist Donny Lloyd, drummer Matt Arsenault, and bassist Sher walked out on stage first to the sound of their intro. Lloyd’s pink glitter guitar immediately caught everyone’s eye. Devin Papadol walked out on stage last and started the song ‘Risk’ right away. While the band was all dressed in black for today’s show, the iconic pink and purple could not be missed: from their instruments and their hair to the tape on the stage, hints of their colours were found everywhere. From the first notes of their set, it was obvious that no one would be able to stand still for the next 50 minutes. The fans even got treated to an unreleased track called ‘Hot Commodity’, which was introduced as a club song by Papadol. While a lot of the crowd knew their songs, there were also some new, soon-to-be fans. For them, Papadol taught them the lyrics for the next song, ‘Habitual’. When she sang “so habitual”, the crowd followed with “you’re a little bitch, you know”.
For ‘Worst Apology’, Papadol thought it looked very fun in the crowd and decided to join them in the little mosh pit. Everyone was smiling and dancing, thoroughly enjoying their songs and energy. Up next was their latest release, ‘Poison Apple Baby’, which came out in November. The crowd was really into it, so when Papadol asked for a wall of death, it happened within seconds. The first crowd surfer of the evening also made his way up to the front during this song. Their set ended with ‘Are You Impressed?’ – yes, we are – and ‘Airhead’.
Just half an hour later, it was time for the last band of the evening to take to the stage: Rain City Drive. The venue was filled with a mixture of fans who came for one of the two headliners, but plenty of people simply went as hard as they could for all three bands. One familiar face stepped up behind the drum kit, as Honey Revenge and Rain City Drive are sharing Matt Arsenault for this tour. The rest of the stage was occupied by vocalist Matt McAndrew, bassist Colin Vieira, and guitarist Weston Richmond and Felipe Sanchez. They started their set with ‘Frozen’ and ‘Concrete Closure’. The crowd sang and danced along to the songs, waving their arms to ‘Talk to a Friend’. McAndrew spotted some fans on the balcony and joked about how they should jump down, asking the crowd on the floor if they would catch them.
For ‘Eye Opener’, the venue turned into a club for a second, giving everyone the chance to show off their best dance moves. After such a high-energy moment, you can’t go wrong with adding an emotional song. So when it was time for ‘Neverbloom’, McAndrew added how this song was about his dad, who passed away from cancer when he was 25. Some tears were shed in the crowd, followed by ‘Blood Runs Cold’.
After a short break, it was time for the encore of the evening, which, of course, consisted of their popular song ‘Medicate Me’, originally sung with Rory Rodriguez from Dayseeker. This was the last moment for the crowd to go crazy, and the lyrics were sung along loudly. After the band left the stage and the concert was over, fans did not have to go home yet. In the hall of the venue, they set up emo karaoke. A perfect moment for those who had not yet lost their voices to have some more fun on their Friday evening.
