A couple of things went awry even before the show began. First, there was a change of venue, it was supposed to be at Sports Plus and second, one band, Long Island's own metal-core/screamo darlings From Autumn To Ashes, who were supposed to play, didn't. The signs hanging outside the Vanderbilt baring this information were looked upon with chagrin by a majority of the show-goers. Thus, there ended up being three bands on the bill, and it was left to upstarts Days Away, hardcore giants Snapcase, and newly crowned pop-punk/emo/hardcore favorites Finch to entertain this crowd on a (finally) spring-like Monday night.

The first band up, Days Away, who formed in Philadelphia but now call California home, played a rather ordinary set. Nothing much about this five-piece stood out from the myriad other pop-punk/emo bands that are flooding the scene. Days Away presented us with nothing new - their songs, some of which were from their The Feel of It EP that came out last winter, were packed with poppy, emotional, pleading vocals from singer/guitarist Keith Goodwin over pretty generic-sounding music. The lyrics mostly dealt with, what else, girls and love, and the band's overall stage demeanor was just not there - standing rather still, they were not the most energetic of people. Their last song was the hardest of the entire set, but still lacked edge. However, these guys are young (all around 20 or younger) and can possibly turn it around if they manage to find their own sound and voice.

The highlight of the night definitely was Snapcase, who, unlike Days Away, were full of vitality. These guys manage to bring energy in droves to the stage and that's great because isn't that what people go to shows for? We want to be entertained and know the band is having as good a time as us! Well, for those unfamiliar with Snapcase, they play exceptional aggressive yet melodic and thought-provoking hardcore with intellectual lyrics, and their philosophy of human progression and enlightenment can best be captured in a line from "Blemish" off Designs for Automotion: "Unlearn to learn to change your ways." And after last fall's monumental release (the best record of 2002, in my opinion), this band has managed to raise my level of appreciation for their art.

Happily, they played plenty of material off the artistic End Transmission that, briefly described, is vocalist Daryl Taberski's epic tale of a futuristic society who have had enough of living in a dystopic, oppressive civilization and decide to rebel, like the more subdued and emotional "New Kata" and "Ten A.M.," and the visceral and riotous "Believe, Revolt." Snapcase opened their set with the most brutal track off the album and a song that was featured on MTV2 for quite awhile, the utterly feral "Coagulate," which set the stage for a performance that was full of energy. All four mobile members, Taberski, bassist Dustin Perry, and guitarists Frank Vicario and Jon Salemi, were all over the stage as a videographer filmed the action, and though confined, Ben Lythberg was manically attacking his drum kit. And of course the band had to play older material as well. Some of these included the likewise rebellious "Typecast Modulator," with subversive lyrics like "We want to know the truth/We're not down to die and be this typecast culture/We're not down to die and be the faceless soldiers," as well as the extraordinary "Bleeding Orange," during which craziness ensued, and yet another revolution-inducing classic, "Energy Dome." How can anyone listen to these guys and not feel the desire to go out and change society, to free himself/herself and his/her mind from oppression? In any case, they ended their set with two calmer offerings, the unsurpassable "Exile Etiquette" and then the finale, "A Synthesis of Classic Forms," which begins quite serenely and gains momentum and power, making it a strong closer. Snapcase's songs are mind-blowing off the album, but when performed live, they reach an even higher level and are simply thrilling because of the sheer intensity with which they are performed.

I'm at a loss as to why people seem to pigeonhole Finch in the pop-punk genre. Granted, these guys are on Drive-Thru Records, have a catchy sound as on "New Beginnings" and "Letters to You," and some songs are more pop-tinged than others like "Stay with Me," but there's much more to it. Finch is much more aggressive than your average pop-punk band with their hardcore edge, making them harder to classify. Some people call them post-hardcore or screamo laced with emo vocals. Whatever, let's just say they meld various genres together impressively. And Finch's signature sound was in abundance, as they played songs from their much-lauded 2002 debut full-length, What It Is to Burn, fusing melody and heavy riffs with hard-hitting breakdowns and impassioned singing/screaming vocals from frontman Nate Barcalow.

Like Snapcase, Finch performed an extremely energetic set and the crowd reciprocated, as on numerous songs, the kids were singing along. No doubt most of the crowd came to see Finch. During one song, "Perfection Through Silence," one of the guitarists went out into the crowd, still playing. This band-fan interaction is always great to see. When they finally left the stage, there was a collective chant of "Kid" until they came back on stage for more. They ended with the single "What It Is to Burn," which for the past couple of months has gotten air play on MTV2. The beginning of the song is quite slow, provoking the crowd to hold up their lighters in the air. And once again, there was much singing along as the song increasingly got harder. All in all, it was a good show, with the bands, namely Snapcase and Finch, keeping the crowd entertained and on their toes throughout the night.

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