I first heard The Early November as a bonus feature on the now classic Drive Thru Records DVD where frontman Ace Enders recorded himself playing an acoustic version of ‘Just Enough’, and in all honesty… I thought it was horrendous.
I didn’t get how unpolished it was, even though I worshiped The Get Up Kids at the time – they could still hold a note. Ace was ahead of his time by letting the emotion grab the songs and drag them back and forth where any trace of pop is lost in shear heartbreak. Waves were made when TEN used lyrics from The Get Up Kids’ song ‘No Love’ which was a hat tip that ended up in legal action causing some awkwardness in the scene. I believe I heard Matt Pyror say he regretted this course of action on his podcast years later, though… So hopefully everyone is pals now. Since then, Ace has been just as productive behind the glass producing other artists, including our favourite Aaron West.
Tonight, we’re promised the ‘The Room’s Too Cold’ album played in full – the album that started it all. And it should be special in the basement venue that is Stereo.
The support for this tour is Mark Rose, a singer / songwriter from Chicago who also fronts on again/off again band Spitalfield. He also confounded ‘Downwrite’ – a website that allows you to commission your favourite artists to write and record songs for you. I used Downwrite once, where the aforementioned Matt Pyror of The Get Up Kids wrote me a belter of an anniversary song. The song lasted longer than the relationship, but that’s how it goes in our emo lives. I absolutely recommend you check that out.
Doors are a little late in opening, but the queue isn’t so long that it matters. Everyone is in quick and stuck to the floor before they know it. Seriously… This is the stickiest floor I’ve been on. Stereo must have a bulletproof defence if anyone ever tries to sue them for slipping in the venue. Paint supplied by Gorilla Glue.
Anyways…
Mark starts off explaining that the first song he ever learned on guitar was Metallica’s ‘Enter Sandman’ before playing a beyond-impressive emo rendition of the metal classic. He may be on the stage alone, but he’s playing an electric guitar which gives everything a harder edge. This does nothing but add value when he cracks into Spitalfield’s songs.
Early wave emo that reeks of the era that we’re celebrating tonight. Keeping the octaves, palm muting, and breaks that exist in the original full band songs – the energy is is maintained very well for a solo act. It makes you crave the full band… Not only Spitalfield, but we’re desperate for drums and bass. Twenty years ago, Spitalfield were in Glasgow supporting a little known band called Fall Out Boy at the Cathouse, but we don’t know what happened to them.
Mark joins the stage with The Early November as their stand-in bassist, which makes me hope he’s getting a fair chunk of the remuneration tonight. He’s certainly getting his fair share of praise as Ace Enders applauds his work ethic and talent.
Tonight is a play through of TEN’s debut album but tonight we’re going from bottom to top. A reverse set and we’re assured we’ll understand when the singalongs hit in the middle of the night. Starting with the lullabyesque ‘Everything’s So Cold… But You’re So Hot’ is a lovely start and the title of the song reminds us we’re in a world of songs written by teenagers.
As the set goes on, the energy climbs and the callbacks are more forthcoming. The climax being the aforementioned bridge of ‘Baby Blue’ where it seems the “I don’t want you… to love me any more!” has been building up inside this crowd for weeks. Great practice for when The Get Up Kids come to St Lukes later on in the year.
The crowd are warm and in full voice tonight as the band happily draw every drop of energy from them and throw it back out. All of the songs are familiar but time has made them even better to listen to live, especially when it comes to the vocals which are now professional and well practiced rather than an over-emotional kid in a bedroom.
Overall, this show is like an early ’00s basement show as you wanted to remember it. At the time it was probably scratchy and even a bit chaotic, but this version is smooth and polished and perfect. Kindness and warmth from our frontman between cathartic, emotional turmoil; great energy while staying note perfect; and a crowd that have been waiting years for tonight.
The Early November’s legacy may be a lot bigger than this show lets on with their being considered one of the most influential bands in emo, but tonight it was an intimate throwback to better times.
Photos by Catching Light Photography
Catching Light Photography
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