For those who don't know, The Juliana Theory was a Pittsburgh 6-piece act that participated in the huge growth of emo/screamo in the late 90s and early 00s before breaking up in 2006. The frontman went solo, and 3 other members formed a band called Vesta. This year they played 6 shows as a celebration of the 10th anniversary of their influential album Emotion Is Dead.
I was able to catch their show in Philly at The Troc (my favorite venue) with my sister. We have been listening to The Juliana Theory since about 2007, and always regretted not being able to see them live, so this was a phenomenal opportunity.
They took the stage a bit later than expected, but the sold-out crowd was mostly getting drinks in the upstairs bar section, an older demographic than the average show here. Opening with a set of favorites from their other albums, the band gradually overcame an initial awkwardness between frontman Brett Detar and the rest of the members. This discomfort was consistent with the rumors about his ego causing their split, and clearly evidenced by his obvious enjoyment of working the crowd, etc., while the instrumentalists seemed to slog through as one would a desk job. [edit: an insider assures me this is not the case and that the band thoroughly enjoys each others' company both onstage and off]
When they returned to play EID in its entirety, the crowd's excitement and their own love of the songs overcame their differences and led to much more showmanship and interaction from all of the band members. They easily surmounted the challenges of playing songs they'd never done live before, such as "Something Isn't Right Here", much to the crowd's satisfaction. The absolutely epic 'big rock ending' of "Goodnight, Goodnight" had hardly faded when crowd chanting brought them back for a further encore so lengthy as to almost be called a third set.
The band's comfort on stage, once it developed, was obvious, cracking jokes about a fight with security the last time they played The Troc and wondering why Philly always provides a better crowd than their home in Pittsburgh. Their showmanship throughout was phenomenal, with Brett's magnetic personality and elvish Michael Jackson appearance centering it all as the crowd sang along. I only wish I could go see them again like the multiple fans present planning on traveling to all 6 shows.
"awkwardness between frontman Brett Detar and the rest of the members. This discomfort was consistent with the rumors about his ego causing their split, and clearly evidenced by his obvious enjoyment of working the crowd, etc., while the instrumentalists seemed to slog through as one would a desk job."
ReplyDeleteAfter having toured with the band as a crew member for 7 years I can state vehemently that this could not be farther from the truth. There was no awkwardness between any of the members of the band on stage at the Philly show (or any of the other ones for that matter). And as someone who had been there, backstage, in the bus, in the van, on the road, in the studio, and just about everywhere the band went, I can assure you that band member egos had zero to do with the band splitting. Trust me. You're reading into things, I promise.
I appreciate the input from an insider and am glad to hear it. Apologies to the band and anyone who was offended, I was just giving my impression from this one show.
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