The second to last show at the Paradox. These are sad days. At least it was a good show. Race for Titles, The Velvet Teen, and Cursive played together for their last time at the Paradox. The show sold out, and attracted a diverse intense crowd.

Race for Titles was the first band. They are a four-piece band from Omaha. RFT has been around for about a year and a half. On stage, there was not an overwhelming amount of energy, and naturally the crowd seemed to just listen to the music as opposed to experiencing it. Their sound seemed pretty consistent through each song with not much variance. I would classify them as a definite emo band, with a trademark emo style. However, they seemed to be pretty talented musicians. If you get the chance I would check them out.

Wow. The Velvet Teen. Is there really anything else I can say? This band was extremely unique, and I cannot remember the last time I have heard such a beautiful voice. Judah Nagler is the lead singer of this three-piece band out of Santa Rosa California. His voice is amazing. Their sound was very original, including an acoustic piano played by Nagler in a few of their songs. The band describes themselves as and "art pop/indie trio". The Velvet Teen had a small following who were singing along to all of their songs, however, it was not hard for the crowd to become entranced by their sound. Their sound was very dynamic, changing from song to song. There was a stretch of slow melodic songs, but the band jumped back into the harder stuff towards the end. Almost as amazing as Judah's voice, was the talent to the bassist, Joshua Staples. He was extremely impressive, a key component to all of their songs. To get a good taste of their music go download the song Counting Backwards, and pick up their latest release on Slowdance Records.

And finally Cursive. To anyone who has seen this band live, you know how amazing their show is. Last night was no exception. Musically and lyrically, Cursive is one of the most mature bands around. It is also refreshing to see a band perform that is not overly caught up in their image. At the show it was so easy to notice how looking "emo" has become such a trend. Every other person looked exactly the same with their black hair, thick-rimmed glasses, messenger bags, random piercing, and stoic faces. Cursive, was exactly the opposite. They were a group of people who played music because they were conveying a message to their audience. They could care less about fitting the mold of their music genre. The crowd was completely mesmerized by their set, myself included. They played for a good amount of time and covered most of their albums. A crowd favorite was definitely The Martyr, off of the Domestica album. They did add a moment of comic relief, playing their shortened renditions of Missy Elliot, J. Lo and a few others. It was entertaining.

The Paradox could not have asked for a better ending to their history as an all ages venue. If you are in Seattle be sure to check out their last show this Saturday night.