Fueled by Ramen 15th Anniversary Concert on 9/9/11

I went and had a blast. My goodies included this pair of neon pink sunglasses. It was nice that they gave it out. These were also used to break a Guinness World Record of most sunglasses worn indoors. Process of breaking the record was lead by Gabe from Cobra Starship. The things people come up with.

We had a fun filled night with Gym Class Heroes, Cobra Starship, The Academy Is..., A Rocket to the Moon and VersaEmerge. Gabe Saporta. Travis McCoy. William Beckett. All these lead band singers have one thing in common. A magnetic personality. They love their fans as much as they love themselves. By no means are any of them shy! But this is an absolute golden quality to have if any band/musician wants to connect with their audience on a more intimate level. I've seen musicians capture people's attention with every word and made everyone in the room feel good about the band and themselves. And then I've seen some performers fall flat on their tushies and the room goes dead silent. Definitely not amused by this type of quiet.

Anywho, this is also the first time I've heard VersaEmerge. Holy guacamole. Yes, they fit with this label very well. The personality and music are at the same level of attractiveness. Lead vocals is Sierra Kusterbeck and Blake Harnage on drums. Both hail from the Sunshine State, Florida. I have to say, VersaEmerge is like a mini-Evanescence wrapped in Paramore. With just as much personal drama, even? Just look at the continuous change in the band line-ups. They seemed to have finally settled down a bit, though. VersaEmerge is a young band with MTV qualities while maintaining their alternative rock status. Spells success?

All the bands that performed tonight thanked their fans and Fueled by Ramen, endlessly. They all made sure we knew that Fueled by Ramen and we the fans, made them. Now I feel appreciated. I know it's probably from a "You HAVE to say this on stage" list, etc., but it's still appreciated. Here's to another 15 years!