Goldfinger / Big Blue Monkey / Near Miss

[editor's note - this was submitted as news, so there was no score attached. I'll give it a 10 unless Mr. Brown posts otherwise. - Scott]

Vacations are typically times to get away from the stress of everyday life. To leave normal life at home, sit back, and rela. A time to enjoy surroundings you don't encounter every day. However, as I passed House of Blues on my way to Myrtle Beach, I knew that wouln't be the case.

Playing with Near Miss and Big Blue Monkey, Goldfinger stopped at HOB to perform for almost 2000 fans. Near Miss took the stage first, and put on a very forgettable set. I can only think of one word to describe this band: horrible. I really can't say many good things about these guys. Their music was flat and dull, the lead singer sounded terrible, and the bassist didn't look a day over 12. There was no energy on stage, and that reflected the crowd's reaction. After about a 45 minute set, they made way for the 2nd act, Big Blue Monkey.

Big Blue Monkey blew Near Miss out of the water. These guys were also unfamiliar to most of the crowd, including myself, but they introduced themselves in a hurry. They got the crowd going almost instantly. The band had more energy than they knew what to do with. Cartwheeles, flips, and rolls only begins to cover BBM's set. Their future looks very, veyr promising, as they showed off a great sound, and lots of oringinality. The lead singer sounded good, nothing earth shattering, but good. These guys made use of their 30 minute set, and got the crowd pumped for Goldfinger.

Unfortunatly, most of the energy was killed off by the hour long pause between sets. The crowd became very restless, and I heard more than a few people mutter "after a wait like this, they better be good." I cant say I wasn't thinking along the same lines. The wait was ludicrous. However, all that was forgotten when the curtain opened, and Darrin took his position at drums, followed by John, Kelly, and Brian.

The band didn't waste any time introducing themselves, and went right into what sounded like "Only a Day." If nothing else, there's no denying the fact that Goldfinger sounds incredible live. After a quick intro, the band ent into a great set, which included "Open Your Eyes," "Here in Your Bedroom," "Tell Me," "Mind's Eye," and "Superman." About halfway through the set, some kid jumped the gate, and began dancing on stage. Security was ready to throw the kid out, but Kelly convinced them overwise, and let the kid dive back into the crowd. After finishing the song, lead singer John paused, and said "So, any other idiots wanna come up here and help us sing? Tell ya what, let's get like 100 kids u here, to help us sing our next song." The band was then joined by at least 100 random fans from the audience, to help sing "Mable." Afterwords, the kids were helped off the stage by security, or stage dived back into the crowd. The band continued playing, as if nothing had happened.

Towards the end of the set, Darrin came to the mic, and asked who would be willing to come up on stage and eat a twinkie.....out of his ass. Sure enough, some kidiot came up and ate the twinkie, without hesitation. Some people will do anything for attention.

After finishing their set, GF exited the stage, but returned after a short break. John re-introduced himself, and said "Well, you're still here....I guess that means we haev to rock this place a little more." The crowd went insane as the band went into a few more songs to wind down the show, including "99 Red Balloons." Overall, I was very impressed with Goldfinger's live show. I could've done without Near Miss and the twinkie stunt, but otherwise, BBM was a great opener, and GF is just awesome. They put on a very energetic and all around fun show. I went in expected to be blown away by one of my favorite bands. I definetly didn't walk away dissapointed.