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SR-71
SR-71's Mark Beauchemin looks into
the crowd as fans reach out to him.
Performers: SR-71, Dexter
Freebish, and Diffuser
Where: The Crowbar
When: Wednesday, March 21st, 2001
9:30 PM
If rock is what you want, then rock you shall
get. Fans faithfully waited in the
rain, snow, and sleet to see SR-71, Dexter Freebish, and Diffuser at the Crowbar
in State College on Wednesday, March 21st.
Despite the weather conditions and the hour delay, the all-age crowd displayed great energy. The concert commenced with
Diffuser, or
as some of their diehard fans will remember them, Flu 13. Last year's name change came about because of their
need
to be different and their distaste for the name/number band names. Promoting their new album, Injury Loves Melody, lead
singer Tomas Costanza, along with guitarist Anthony Cangelosi, bassist Lawrence
“Larry” Sullivan, and drummer Billy Alemaghides, started encouraging the audience to
crowd surf. Their hit single, "Karma," also on the MI:2 soundtrack,
sparked the crowd's enthusiasm as well as the band's emotion. Evidence of
this energy included Costanza playing
the guitar upside down and behind his head to the uncontrollable crowd surfing
and Cangelosi
inviting us home to cook us mac n cheese and sip some champagne. Their
freestyle performance and energy foreshadowed the drama about to be unleashed on
stage and the crowds' intense reactions.
Dexter Freebish
made their entrance at 10:30,
starting off with "What Do You See?" off
of the A Life of Saturdays album. Their name comes from the now
defunct Dexter Freebish roller coaster in Texas, which the band grew up riding.
The band
consists of Chris Lowe (bass, vocals), Rob Schilz (drums), Kyle (lead vocals),
Scott Romig (guitar, keys), and Charles Martin (lead guitar, vocals). The
roller coaster name of the band is apropos, as it is a metaphor for the sound of
their music. Their music ranges from rock, "My Madonna," to techno,
"Higher," to ballads, "Tomorrow." Even though their
style is a little more subdued than Diffuser, the crowd was satisfied and almost
mesmerized by the music of the band, winners of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest in
1999. Although not all fans were paying attention to
the music since they were busy body surfing. One individual from the audience
surfed right onto the stage during "Tomorrow,"
knocking the monitors and microphone stands over and forcing the band to stop and fix
their equipment. Even as the crowd’s much appreciated enthusiasm may have made for some
technical difficulties, this did not faze Dexter Freebish from giving an amazing
performance with their hit songs, "My Madonna" and "Leaving Town."
Kyle was so impressed by the
chaos unraveling before him that he captured it with a photograph from
onstage.
Finally,
SR-71, ready to wow the crowd, came on
strong with "Politically Correct,"
sending the hyper crowd wild. SR-71 consists of Mitch Allan (lead vocals,
guitar), Jeff Reid (bass, background vocals), and Mark Beauchemin (guitar,
background vocals). Although the group is heavily influenced by British
artists like the Beatles, Queen, and the Police,
the sound is all their own. “Mitch has got
a very distinctive voice and I think we all have distinct ways of doing our
thing musically," comments Dan Garvin, former drummer. "We
just want to bring back the rock!” This act proved to be pure rock.
Mitch yelled out to the crowd, “[There's
gonna be] More
rock tonight than any other night!” Their
set included their hit songs, "Right Now," with pulsating strobe lights
hitting the crowd during the chorus, and "Last Man on the Moon" and "Empty Spaces," off
their album Now You See Inside. SR-71’s
views on encores-"bull shit." They spared us the anticipation of whether or not
they were going to come back on and just stayed on. Mitch told the crowd next time
they were at a concert and the band leaves to not clap or scream and see what the
band does. This encore included Mitch’s favorite song, "Paul McCartney,"
and KISS's, "Rock And Roll All Night" with the collaboration of Diffuser and
Dexter Freebish. The place erupted, contrary to the final song's
chorus, the show ended all too soon. -Jessica
Korn
Click on the artist to see photos from this
concert:
SR-71
Dexter Freebish
Diffuser
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