The Gamits

Alkaline Trio/Smoking Popes/The Gamits: live in Denverlive in Denver (2011)
live show

Reviewer Rating: 4.5

Contributed by: thepopeofchili-townthepopeofchili-town
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Published on July 15th 2011The last time Alkaline Trio played a headlining show in Denver, it was the night after This Addiction dropped, and it was raining profusely. Flash-forward a year-and-a-half to this night, the eve of the release of their acoustic album, Damnesia. The rain outside refused to quit, so I walked into the.

The last time Alkaline Trio played a headlining show in Denver, it was the night after This Addiction dropped, and it was raining profusely. Flash-forward a year-and-a-half to this night, the eve of the release of their acoustic album, Damnesia. The rain outside refused to quit, so I walked into the venue feeling a bit of déjà vu.

The Trio always seem to bring along a strong supporting cast with them on their headlining tours, and this night was no exception. Kicking things off were local punk rock heroes the Gamits. This was my first time seeing the band, which I really have no excuse for, seeing as I spent a good year-and-a-half at art school in Denver. To put it lightly, they absolutely killed it. Their set was mostly comprised of songs from last year's excellent Parts. The songs from that album sounded nearly identical to their studio counterparts, but with even more urgency and energy. Chris Fogal's vocals have become quite raspy over the years, and it was interesting hearing that applied to the few older songs they played, like "Bloodstains/Picture Frames" and closer "Last of the Mullets". My only disappointment with their set was not getting to hear personal favorite "The Still and the Lost", but it was still a hell of a way to kick off the evening.

Set list:

Falling Apart
No One Cares Why Should I
Sorry Song
Bloodstains/Picture Frames
Delusional
Love Suicidal
Never Before Noon
This Shell
Last of the Mullets

Chicago legends the Smoking Popes were up next, and I was just excited for them as I was for the headliners. I probably listen to the Trio more, but I've seen them so many times I've lost count. This was my first live experience with the Popes, and hopefully it won't be my last. They played a great mix of new and old with a youthful energy not always seen in bands of their age. It's always great when you can tell that a band is really enjoying what they do. Matt Skiba joined the band on stage to sing the "ba ba ba da da"s in "Writing a Letter", and the band dedicated "Megan" to Bayside, as a thank you for covering it, and bringing the band to a new audience.

Set list:

Not That Kind of Girlfriend
Wish We Were
Rubella
Can't Find It
If You Don't Care
No More Smiles
Gotta Know
Diary of a Teen Tragedy
Ramblin/Off
Writing a Letter [w/ Matt Skiba]
Megan
Need You Around
I Know You Love Me

And with that, it was time for Alkaline Trio. Last time I saw the band, they made a huge dramatic entrance, with fog machines, circus music, and a banner drop. This time they just kind of wandered onto the stage without so much as the lights dimming. I didn't even recognize that it was Dan Andriano onstage, and not some roadie doing one last sound check until he looked up at the crowd and started playing an ominous bass intro. From there, the rest of the band joined him and launched into "In Vein" from everybody's least favorite Trio record, Agony & Irony. It was a curious choice of opener to say the least, but it got the crowd moving for the first time all night.

After that, it was pretty much all old-school Trio for the next 30 minutes or so. Somewhat surprisingly, tracks collected on the group's self-titled compilation album featured the most heavily. Other surprises included B-side "Old School Reasons" and Goddamnit's "San Francisco". Yet this tour is in support of Damnesia, and as such, the last third or so of the group's set was composed of acoustic renditions of old favorites like "Clavicle" and "You've Got So Far to Go", as well as new songs from the record, such as the fun sing-along "Olde English 800" (try not to get it stuck in your head. It's impossible), and their cover of the Violent Femmes' classic "I Held Her in My Arms", for which they were joined by the Smoking Popes. It's interesting that the band seemed to ignore the "hits", like "Private Eye", "This Could Be Love" and "Radio", even though all three songs make altered appearances on Damnesia.

Alkaline Trio are always worth checking out when they come to town, but with this semi-acoustic tour, they're offering a unique experience that may not happen again. Don't miss this one!

Set list:

In Vein
Snake Oil Tanker
Fine Without You
Cooking Wine
Hating Every Minute
Old School Reasons
I Lied My Face Off
Trouble Breathing
San Francisco
If You Had a Bad Time (acoustic)
Clavicle (acoustic)
Calling All Skeletons (acoustic)
You've Got So Far to Go (acoustic)
Olde English 800 (acoustic)
I Held Her in My Arms [Violent Femmes cover w/ Smoking Popes]
Bleeder
Encore:
Fine
Mr. Chainsaw
97

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

kylewagoner (July 19, 2011)

Holy shit that Alkaline Trio set list. I do not like In Vein, though. I'd have been there and they'd have started and I'd have probably been like, "Oh, here we go," but then been thoroughly impressed with the follow-up. Fuckin' If You Had a Bad Time!!

oldpunkerforever (July 18, 2011)

My fave AT record, their split w One Man Army, easy-oldpunker-

mattp330 (July 17, 2011)

i agree, i think good mourning is amazing, even though skiba's vocals are off i think it adds to it. a&i isn't horrible, its just boring

superskabro (July 17, 2011)

most perfect Alk3 setlist of all time. So fucking incredible. wow.

xherojuanax (July 16, 2011)

Good to see they ignored the Facebook poll results on the songs people wanted to see live. The results were pretty predictable, and Mr. Chainsaw is an adequate substitute for Radio.

MuhammadMormon (July 16, 2011)

No matter how bad "Crimson" may be, it's glorious when you compare it to Matt Skiba's solo shit. Fucking gross.

jacknife737 (July 16, 2011)

I'd say Agony and Irony is probably the worst received album by fans: i think Crimson is much more liked today, than when it was first released.

thepopeofchili-town (July 16, 2011)

Everyone I know who likes Trio loves those two records. Good Mourning is probably my favorite. Aside from "Calling All Skeletons" and "Do You Wanna Know?", A&I is kind of boring, and I remember everyone being bummed on it when it came out.

Maverick (July 16, 2011)

Pretty sure Crimson is everybody's least-favorite Trio record. Either that or Good Mourning. A&I isn't a bad record at all.

-Scott

keithybobeefy (July 15, 2011)

My least favorite Trio album would be This Addiction. It's still good, but it's the one that I listen to least. This show sounds like it was pretty great.

BarleyPat (July 15, 2011)

Yes. Once in the beginning and once at the end.

Chadreligion (July 15, 2011)

seeing this tour on sunday night.. fucking stokage!

thegreatestmanalive (July 15, 2011)

Fuck I wanna see alkaline trio live just once. Reading these reviews always bums me out that I live in Canada. Also Gamits rule

notfeelingcreative (July 15, 2011)

"Needs moar "If You Had a Bad Time" and "Back to Hell""

So you wanted "If you had a bad time" played twice?

notfeelingcreative (July 15, 2011)

Amazing set from both bands. Although I prefer Clavicle played in its original form.

BarleyPat (July 15, 2011)

That sounds like a great set list to me. Needs moar "If You Had a Bad Time" and "Back to Hell"