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 | The MatchesLive At The House Of Blues DVD2004 Kung Fu 
  Review by: KirbyPuckett See others by this writer ![[staff]](/images/icons/staffsticker.gif){kind=icon}
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Published on September 14th 2004 Over the past thirteen installments in the Show Must Go Off series Kung Fu has focused on bands that have already made it. Groups like the Vandals, Goldfinger, Adolescents, Guttermouth and Reel Big Fish are household names, all of whom have extensive discographies. The Matches however, wait, the who? The Matches -- Epitaph’s latest grab from sunny California! You may recall Brian and I admiring their self-released debut or the Epitaph re-issue of E. Von Dahl Killed the Locals. For those who don’t recall and the others who are too lazy to click away, Matches play pop-punk weighing heavily on irresistible vocal harmonies to stand out above the rest of the bunch. Since the band is relatively new there’s not much material for them to cover. A 40-minute set is made up from cuts that made E. Von Dahl Killed the Locals, a splendid summer record, and their lone holiday song “December is for Cynics.” I’ve had the pleasure of seeing the Matches perform twice on the Warped Tour this year and coupled with this performance I’m shocked at how musically tight they are. “Dog Eared Page,” “Audio Blood,” “Borderline Creep,” and the rest of the eleven song set list are transferred practically flawlessly from the album. Even the tiniest parts of songs are included into the upbeat show (see: the answering machine on “Chain Me Free” or the bebop intro to “Eryn Smith”). Quirky stage presence provides a visual appeal, vocalist Shawn has poise reminiscent of Billie Joe of Green Day and the afro-bearing guitarist, Jon Devoto’s antics matched by his Super Mario Bros. guitar interlude are a few behaviors that don’t strand them like cardboard cutouts in front of the House of Blues crowd. While the extras don’t exactly make up for the brevity of the DVD, it’s still worth checking out. There’s some behind the scenes footage with acoustic parking lot performances and the band having a blast being themselves. The commentary is a valuable section of the disc, as the young gentlemen provide enough spunk to get you through. This specific show was filmed as the band opened for Zebrahead while their DVD was captured. As opposed to that one, the quality spanning across the eight camera angles here is magnificent, some of the best work in the catalog. The Matches are akin to the Goldfinger, Blink 182 and/or MxPx for the new era of punk. There is plenty of potential packed into their young souls that will one day project them up to a higher level. Jump on the bandwagon now; don’t be a second late as this DVD is fun enough to remind you of your adolescent years bouncing at shows and appealing enough for the kids who will one day have their walls decorated in tons of posters from the Matches.
People who liked this also liked: ![The Matches - E. Von Dahl Killed The Locals [re-issue]](/images/covers/thumb/matches-e_von_dahl_killed_the_locals.jpg)          Please login or register to post comments. What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?
i disagree with the comparisons to mest and good charlotte. those bands take themselves way to seriously. the matches remind me of blink 182 durring their dude ranch, enema period. their a fast and fun band and thats it. the song writting is solid and very good in a pop-punk style. i used to love bands the the queers and i really like this band as well. punks not dead, it's just in a coma. what "decline of punk?" punk is fucking dead, get the fuck over it. they're a nice bunch of guys.....but their music is boring and typical new pop punk ala mest, good charlotte, goldfinger shit. The problem with PunkNews.ORG reviews is that they let fan-boys review their favorite bands, as in this case. No music journalist with an ounce of taste would give this DVD a 7/10. NO ONE. This band is horrible, their lyrics painful, and they most certainly do not fucking deserve DVD treatment after one godawful album. " This album is really similar to the Bouncing Souls "the good, the bad, and the argyle." " ...not based on whether or not Hot Topic carries it. No. You're the idiot. This album is really similar to the Bouncing Souls "the good, the bad, and the argyle." And if your reason for not liking something is that it's too musically accessible - grow up. Listen to what you like because you like it, not based on whether or not Hot Topic carries it. People like you are the worse kind of posers. "I will never, ever, view this DVD. But I do think that 'E.Von Dahl..." is probably the best pop punk album of the last three or four years." well, they could be doing it as a tribute to them. maybe tounge in cheek stuff talk about ripping off the cover of Pennywise's "About Time". Same colour scheme even Did someone say About Time? I will never, ever, view this DVD. But I do think that 'E.Von Dahl..." is probably the best pop punk album of the last three or four years. they are alright, but do they really diserve a dvd? Love the Matches, great band, but talk about ripping off the cover of Pennywise's "About Time". Same colour scheme even I'd love to hear an explanation how this is pretentious. This is the most irrelevant piece of crap. A shitty band, a shitty DVD, shitty music. stupid pretentious tatecore bullshit. |
