Photos and Review by Robert McDonald
Rise Against photos HERE
Killswitch Engage photos HERE
letlive photos HERE
Rise Against , currently on tour with Killswitch Engage and letlive, performed at the Blue Hills Bank Pavilion in Boston on Friday. For those of you who have never been, the Pavilion is an open-air venue on the Boston waterfront. A great place to catch a summer concert but it’s seated arrangement and lack of GA pit is better suited for, how would you say, more “reserved” audiences. This fact was brought up multiple times by each band as they tried creative ways to energize their fans, who are more comfortable banging around in sweaty mosh pits then fidgeting in plastic seats.
letlive opened the night with an energetic set, despite performing to a scant crowd of early arrivers. Front man Jason Aalon Alexander Butler, known for his on-stage antics, did his part to overcome the environment and energize the crowd. Halfway through the second song he jumped of the stage, vaulted over the first few rows of seats nearly decapitating anyone in line with his microphone cord. On his way back to the stage, he stumbled over a seat, regained his composure and quietly took a seat in the crowd staring intently at the stage before rising again applying a heartfelt hug to a fan before returning back to the stage. In between the activity, they performed a dynamic set including “Muther”, “Renegade ‘86”, and “27 Club” before closing with “Banshee”.
Next up, Killswitch Engage from Westfield, MA electrified the home state crowd with a high energy set including a nice mix of KWE classics with an appropriate dose of new tunes. Up to his usual hijinx, Adam Dutkiewicz did his best to encourage the crowd to “chair mosh” and later played his way through the first few rows of seats before settling down in front of WAAF’s Danielle Murr. Danielle was more than happy to capture the seated performance of “End of Heartache” and post the video to Instagram. The band sounded great live and their set also included “A Bid Farewell”, “Fixation on the Darkness” and “My Last Serenade”.
Rise Against, the Chicago band, known for their melodic punk sound and Progressive beliefs, took the stage last. They kicked off their set with the blistering rhythmn of “The Great Die Off”, “The Good Left Undone” and “Satellite”. Tim McIlrath did the time to acknowledge the latest victory for gay rights, but admitted that “there was more to do” before dedicating the anti-bullying anthem “Make it Stop”. They hardly let up until late in the show when frontman Tim McIlrath thrilled the audience with a two song acoustic set consisting of “Hero of War” and “Swing Life Away”. Much to the approval of the crowd, Rise Against made the best of a challenging night, concluding with a crowd-pleasing encore of “Dancing for Rain” and “Savior”.
Rise Against and Killswitch Engage at the Blue Hills Bank Pavillion – Boston, MA
