Images: Citizen, You Blew It!, Hostage Calm, Praise September 22, 2014 at Eagle Aerie Hall

Pulling up to the Eagle Hall for the Citizen/You Blew It/Hostage Calm/Praise/Off Trends show, I was met with parked cars spilling into the church across the street. Having missed the Run For Cover band here a year ago and hearing nothing but great things, I made sure to catch them this time around, and apparently so did a few hundred other people. Citizen is quickly becoming a southern Nevada favorite, with tickets seeming to sell themselves, making this the fourth of five straight sold-out shows on the tour of this young Michigan quartet.

Citizen’s music is sincere, but stops just short of real sadness, which ends up making their sets equal parts intimate and raucous. Their flagship album Youth features songs like “Sleep” and “The Summer,” which, dark and heartfelt, could not sound better in a live setting. The band isn’t jumping off of speakers or flipping guitars or eating live bats on stage, but they have a sort of somber, intense demeanor that works incredibly well with the music. Their two gems, “The Night I Drove Alone” and “How Does It Feel?” might have shaken some nails loose from kids singing so loud, and even then, those two were overshadowed by a great performance of “Drawn Out,” with the chorus seeming to echo off the mountain down the road. It was an awesome set that seemed to fly by entirely too fast, lacking only the extra half hour those in attendance undoubtedly wanted.

As much as Citizen deserves all the praise heaped on them, their supporting bands on this tour are definitely not to be overlooked. Things kicked off with an energetic set from local pop punk band Off Trends and then we got an intense set from punk band Praise. I was glad to hear a heavy dose of songs from You Blew It’s new album Keep Doing What You’re Doing, especially “Better to Best,” which came as a pleasant surprise and sounded incredible with a good portion of the crowd singing in unison. After a few (seemingly required) Las Vegas/gambling jokes, they played their hits, including “Award of the Year Award” and “Terry vs Tori.” The only complaint I would have is sound-related, with too-quiet vocals leaving me wondering how those who’d never heard the band or read their lyrics enjoyed their set.

During Hostage Calm, the considerable crowd swayed back and forth throughout a fun, fast-paced set that did well to combine songs from Please Remain Calm like “Woke Up Next To A Body” and ear wormingly catchy “The M Word” with new tracks from their latest album, Die On Stage. Their twenty minutes were highlighted by a boisterous performance of “Someone Else,” which everyone in the room seemed to know every word of. This show turned out to be one of Hostage Calm’s last, as the band dropped off the tour and announced their breakup just days later. So I’m thankful I had the chance to see them this once.

Overall, this was a show where a bunch of kids with flushed faces and sweaty band tees were sent home happy knowing there are much worse ways to spend a Monday night.

-Felipe Garcia

Photos by Hunter Wallace | https://www.flickr.com/photos/hunter_wallace/