The show opened with Fairline, a local Seattle band that is apparently moving to Arizona. Only three of the five members were there, and they just played a short, but sweet two-song acoustic set. Trey Nickelsen, the guitarist, is Garrett’s brother. They were pretty good, but the music wasn’t really exciting the crowd much.
After them Austin Gibbs in his odd cowboy boots played several songs. More people than I expected seemed to know his music. It was fun, and I have to admit I didn’t really know his music, but I liked it a lot, and the crowd really liked “I Like The Ones” which The Maine put out for free a little while back.
The last band to play before The Maine was This Century. Joel, the singer was very enthusiastic and was the first of the performers to actually move around when he sang. Fan girls squealed and reached out to some part of him. The crowd hit was definitely “To Love and Back.” Their performance altogether was really exciting, and they show a lot of potential, but I personally probably wouldn’t see them again, but I bet the majority of the people there would.
Finally, The Maine played, and they were amazing. It was scorching hot, and everybody was soaking in sweat. John came out with no shirt on and the fans went crazy. The whole band genuinely looked like they were enjoying themselves. The crowd was wild, especially the times when John went in to crowd surf. Their 18 song set list started out with Inside of You, and ended with We’ll All Be. John even added some screamo in one of their songs. Other new songs they played were “Don’t Stop Now,” “Growing up,” and “Fuel To The Fire.” They also played “Right Girl,” and John looked authentically surprised that we knew the words. They also played the old version of “Count ‘em One, Two, Three” which made everyone ecstatic. Their whole performance was amazing, and I enjoyed every single second of it. They have so much potential as artists, and already have a rapidly growing fan base.
After the show, The Maine said that they were going to what they called, “hang out.” It really wasn’t hanging out though. Everyone had to line up outside again, and wait their turn to see them sitting behind a table. There really wasn’t a lot of time to do anything but have a quick conversation and have them sign something. I’m not sure if I really liked this because I was hoping to actually talk to them normally and not rushed. Luckily, I waited around for them to come out, and got to see Kennedy and Pat because the rest just got on the bus and ate. But the guys seemed really nice, and Jared remembered me from the Tweet Up, and John sort of did possibly. It just took him a while. Kennedy was extremely smiley and stayed out the longest out of all of them, talking to fans and actually hanging out.
I would recommend going to An Evening with the Maine because they are all very talented, and have very good stage presence. Their performance live is energizing and exciting. I wish that day never ended, and if you go you might feel the same way.
By Stefany Bryan
