That’s right. The reunion shows, which have slowly morphed into a reunion tour for Hot Water Music, will not be ending anytime soon. The details of what this means for the future of the members’ other projects or whether HWM will release a full album of new material is yet to be clarified by the band. Yet, I am sure that I’m not alone when I say that I’m cool with that, so long as I get to see my Hot Water play live again.

Back in January, my wife and I were fortunate to attend what we thought was the one-off reunion show in the northeast (in Sayreville, NJ). It would be difficult for me to put in words the passion and energy exhibited in the club that night by the band or the crowd, but let’s just say that it was invigorating, inspiring and emotional. I have always looked at Hot Water Music shows like sex or pizza – you know that old cliché. In the case with the Sayreville concert, compare it to extra saucy slices right out of the oven, where the gooey cheese melts out of the folded crust (I’m a New Yorker and we fold our pizza). In other words, it quite possibly was the best show that I’ve witnessed (and I have been to a crazy number of HWM concerts, not to mention other shows.)

This past Friday night may not have quite compared to the exhilaration and fervor of that prior reunion show. Still, as I said, a Hot Water Music concert is like sex or pizza, so you know you’re going to feel good and satisfied when you walk out of the venue afterwards. Even better, the guys had a special surprise, a “happy ending” if you will – for all of you who are familiar with massages…{ahem}…I mean, desserts at Friendly’s.

Hot Water played two shows this weekend, the first at the Trocadero in Philadelphia on Friday and the second at Terminal 8 in New York on Saturday. The Gainesville, FL, natives hand-picked the support acts for each date, giving those fans managing to make it to both shows an all-star stable of both past and current greats. The New York show opened with Paint it Black, followed by the popular Thursday, while Philadelphia had Ann Beretta and the Loved Ones.

Ann Beretta recently reunited to play a grip of shows and festivals over the summer. The group officially called it quits in 2005, but has not released an album since 2003. I was fortunate to catch them back when they were at their best. I do not remember the exact year, but it was sometime around 1999 or 2000. They opened up for Avail at Coney Island High in New York and sufficiently impressed me, so I purchased the band’s debut, Bitter Tongues, and played it on a regular basis for the next couple of years. Spawning from the remnants of the hardcore band, Inquisition, Ann Beretta can call themselves a post-hardcore band and actually mean it (as opposed to many of the other bands that the media labels with the overused genre term). The group’s songs are a blend of raw pop-punk (the true pop-punk contrasting against the mainstream, watered-down stuff), deep riffs and sing-a-long melodies leading up to or coming off of classic breakdowns.

It was great to see the trio back together, rocking through a nice selection of songs. Down on the floor, it did not seem as many people in the crowd were familiar with Ann Beretta or their catalog. I am not sure if this was because the crowd consisted of unusually younger individuals or, perhaps, most of the older fans opted to watch the show from the balcony. I could see that the bar (out the back of the balcony) appeared quite packed.

Either way, I was certainly not the only one in the crowd singing along to the hits. The band members seemed to be enjoying themselves as well, so I’m hopeful that they will hit the studio at some point (though last I heard, there are no plans for a new record.) I was a bit surprised by how poppy some of the songs sounded. I have not heard the band’s final release, 2003’s Three Chord Revolution. I am sure that many of these tracks are found on this album, while a couple are most likely from vocalist Rob Huddleston’s new band, Foundation. They ended on a high note with the timeless “Forever Family.” More of the audience seemed acquainted with this song, or at least found a way to get into it, singing and/or dancing/jumping/moving/shifting around in the crowd.

Philly-natives The Loved Ones were the next on stage. This is another great band, which has been consistently putting out good music for the past few years. Originally playing classic post-hardcore punk in the vein of Lifetime, Kid Dynamite and None More Black, the band’s most recent, sophomoric effort, last year’s Build & Burn, saw the band add bassist Chris Gonzalez and guitarist Dave Walsh (both had recently left the Explosion) and lose original bassist Michael Cotterman (of Kid Dynamite fame.) The two new members brought a more mature sound, balancing out some of the rawness of the earlier releases (Keep Your Heart and The Loved Ones EP) and adding piano/keys to a couple of tracks. Personally, my favorite songs are off the first album, but I think the overall sound has improved. Regardless of my opinion of the studio versions, all of the songs sound fantastic live and the new members undoubtedly bring excitement to the performances.

As I also live in Philadelphia, I’ve had the opportunity to catch the Loved Ones a few times, both as a support act and as a headliner, and they definitely know how to bring it. The band was particularly amped on Friday. Vocalist Dave Hause always discusses how great it is to play in his hometown and on Friday, many of the band’s family members and friends attended to watch. In addition, Hause mentioned how special it was for his band to open for Hot Water Music, a band that means a great deal to him, both musically and emotionally. Apparently, he and other individuals in the group are good friends with HWM, so the opportunity to catch them after had particular meaning to them. The feeling must have been mutual, as I caught multiple glimpses of members of Hot Water Music watching the show from a door behind the stage.

The Loved Ones worked their way through a nice selection of songs, although not nearly as many as the last time I saw them (when I believe they played every song they have, including one twice). A good portion of the crowd was well versed with the lyrics and aptly sang along with Hause. Gonzalez put on a show of his own, charging to the front of the stage and balancing on the monitor. For the past few months, Hause’s sister Missy has joined the band on tour, working the keys for the shows. They sounded wonderful on newer tracks, such as “Selfish Masquerade,” adding the much-needed musical component.

My personal highlight songs of the band’s set were “Jane,” “Breathe In” and (surprisingly) “Louisiana.” The Loved Ones finished off the set with this track, which has to be one of the first songs written about Post-Katrina recuperation. While I think it is a notable song normally, the group’s rendition on Friday felt special. They added some additional melodies and Hause personalized some of the lyrics for the audience.

Finally, it was time for Hot Water Music to take the stage. The wait between the sets was nice and short and it was not long before roadies lifted the HWM logo banner at the back of the stage. Soon the club went dark and the waiting crowd let out a roar. Some bluegrass, rockabilly country-type music blared out of the speakers and I could make out silhouettes on the right side of the stage. About ten to 15 seconds later, bodies moved across the stage, the lights flashed on and HWM kicked off a glorious set of tunes.

An early highlight took place when Dave Hause of the Loved Ones ran out on the stage to sing “Trusty Chords” in the middle of the stage, using the microphone normally reserved for Jason Black’s backup vocals. Hause was clearly honored to be out there with his friends. In fact, he was so caught up on the moment that he started to walk off the stage halfway through the song to allow HWM to take back over. Wollard grabbed him and the two of them shared a mic, bellowing the deep, coarse sounds that have become HWM’s trademarked sound into each other’s face. The scene was timeless for all fortunate enough to witness the moment, as it exemplified just how deep of a meaning the band had upon another vocalist (no doubt, a parallel that brought the musicians onto the same platform as the fans.)

At one point, someone in the crowd threw a fedora up on stage. The hat landed by Ragan’s feet, so Chuck picked it up, looked it over and tried it on. He rocked the hat for the next song, adding a bit of humor to the set, while again strengthening the band’s connection to the fans. In fact, the HWM guys made it a point to express their gratitude repeatedly throughout their show, not for attending on this night, but for showing support for the 15 years or so of the band’s existence.

By the way, Chuck returned the hat to the fan. The kid threw it back up on the stage and, after the show, gave it to Ragan. Apparently, Chuck decided to sport it again the next night in NYC.

Each of the band members seemed more emotional than they normally appear at shows, putting the passion into the music and their expressions on stage. Out of the four, Ragan may have been the most fired up, which is appropriate as he was the one that wanted time off, eventually leading the band’s hiatus (and the other three members’ formation of the Draft.) All of the feelings transferred over to the music, leading to performances such as the epic rendition of “Manual,” when the band let the crowd take over on vocals. This was one of the many songs that gave Chris Wollard, Ragan and Black the opportunity to improvise their respective guitar parts, an aspect of the band’s live shows on which they have built quite a reputation. I have never seen Black beat on his bass as he did on this evening, tossing it from one side of his body to the other, only to slam it back with the base of his palm.

The set was short. It was not particularly short for a normal show, but noticeably shorter than the Sayreville concert. While the NJ show lasted over 90 minutes (possibly up to two hours), HWM was only 40-45 minutes in when Chuck announced that they were about to play the last song. After the audience understandably groaned in disappointment, Ragan replied, “Don’t worry. We’ll be back.” It seemed like the majority of the crowd did not catch this remark. Regardless, the pit exploded into a frenzy, as the fans wanted to get the most out of this experience.

Fortunately, HWM was not officially finished and the guys did not make the fans wait long before the encore. After five minutes, they rushed back on stage to perform the final four songs of the night, including the staple live track “Turnstile” (off the second record Fuel for the Hate Game) as the closing number. It was powerful and passionate and surely would have been my personal highlight of the evening had it not been for Chuck’s words during the encore. “See you next time.”

Categories: Concert Reviews, News
Tags: Ann Beretta, Hot Water Music, The Loved Ones