Titus Andronicus, The So So Glos, The Caldwell Walters May 10, 2013
Friday night featured a four-band showcase at the new Walters (not on Washington) headlined by New Jersey indie-punk group Titus Andronicus, bringing their Brooklyn friends The So So Glos along on what they are calling the "Bring Back the Dudes" tour. Locals Chemistry and The Caldwell rounded out the evening.
First band up The Caldwell featured a slew of familiar faces of the Houston music scene playing their first gig ever. Fronted by vocalist/guitarist James Essary, who can also be seen supporting recent scene-stealer Adam Bricks, the band gave forth a solid effort with a set of originals that couldn't help but remind me a whole bunch of the Walkmen.
I guess if you're going to emulate a band, that's surely a good one to choose. The rest of the evening's entertainers were a tad on the louder and heavier side, but The Caldwell brought the perfect amount of noise to ease everyone into the night.
A short but sweet little set from Chemistry found the youngsters leaning more to the punkier side of the evening's bands. Halfway through their performance, a friend mentioned their likeness to Warped Tour vets New Found Glory, which I couldn't have agreed with more.
The pop-punk sound, which somehow has yet to disappear since its emergence in the mid-90s, was more than relevant in the 20 minutes or so these kids were up onstage. The crowd seemed to love it, and it brought a bit more energy to the room after the slower-paced set from The Caldwell.
The first national act of the night was Brooklyn's The So So Glos, who have been gaining a bit of steam in the indie-rock world of as of late. Touring with Titus Andronicus numerous times in years past -- including the original "Bring On the Dudes" tour in 2009 -- the So So Glos seem to be a perfect companion for a road trip across the country. They really brought the party in terms of their music, which was evident with their continual requests for the crowd to get rowdier. And boy, did they.
Finally a nice little hipster pit started to form, which only made the Glos play harder and faster. It was true Brooklyn party-punk, and an excellent gateway to Titus Andronicus' ensuing performance. They were the fluffer, per se, and got the crowd nice and hard for the main event.