Motion City Soundtrack draws fans to the Palladium

By: Kristen Podgurski

Posted: 11/15/07

11/15/07 - On Sunday, MTVU sponsored a tour featuring Motion City Soundtrack with special guests Mae, Anberlin, and Metro Station made their way to The Palladium in Worcester, Mass. Despite the cold temperatures, the lines formed early with kids hoping to get that coveted front-row spot.

Overall, the show was more than worth the hour or so drive to Worcester.

Los Angeles-based electro-pop rock band Metro Station opened the show. I really can't get over the fact that its lyrics are just terrible, but I will say the group does put on a decent live show.

The crowd wasn't overly receptive except for this one awkward kid dancing like his life depended on it, but I say good for him, that's what concerts are for.

Eventually the danceable beats of songs, "Disco" and "Seventeen Forever" took over and kids started having a good time. Metro Station also had the 14-year-old girls swooning with its love ballad, "Kelsey." The band was decent, not my cup of tea so to speak, but it wasn't painful to have to listen to either.

Second openers, Anberlin, came out rocking and didn't stop until the last song. Lead singer, Stephen Christian, knows how to get a show going. I never really had a chance to see the band live before this show and I must say the band left an impression. I was slightly disappointed that its set consisted mostly of songs off of its newest album, Cities. Absolutely nothing against any of the songs from that record but it would've been nice to hear a few older songs as well. I look forward to seeing this band again.

The Virginia-based rock band, Mae, which is serving as main support for this tour, followed Anberlin. A tough act to follow, but Mae more than held its own. With the recent departure of its bass player and keyboardist, many people were skeptical as to whether Mae could pull off a good show with two replacements that had only a couple months to rehearse.

I am not going to lie, Mae is my favorite band and I was a little anxious to see what this show would bring. However, Mae was on top of its game; dare I say it sounded even better than its last show in August, and that's saying a lot.

The crowd was definitely into them; it's about time this band gets some recognition. Lead singer, Dave Elkins scored some points when he broke out a Red Sox hat in honor of the recent World Series win.

I think Mae has nothing to worry about in its future. New bass player Josiah Schlater and keyboardist Robert Smith are great musicians and the perfect replacements on tour.

Motion City Soundtrack, undoubtedly the band the majority of the crowd was there to see, closed out the show. Motion City Soundtrack delivered its usual high-energy performance with a nice mix of old and new songs.

The band has recently gained even more popularity with the recent release of Even if it Kills Me and occasional appearances on MTV's TRL.

Looking at the crowd below as I stood at the bar area was quite a sight. Motion City Soundtrack's live show is definitely worth seeing. Just watching keyboardist Jesse Johnson play is entertainment enough.

The sea of kids moshing and crowd surfing said it all. Then I felt really old when I realized the average age of Motion City Soundtrack's fan base was probably somewhere in the ballpark of 15. In the end Motion City Soundtrack is worth seeing again; you're guaranteed to have a good time at one of its shows.