Bayside- Live at the Bayside Social Club

It’s hard to not lump Bayside in with pretty much every “emo” band out in the wilderness that is popular music. Based purely on their style of music it is pretty easy to do so. Also, being on Victory Records doesn't help their cause, as this album was released in 2008 on the Victory label, one that is known for their pop-punk acts. At the same time, Bayside has something about them that makes their music less cookie-cutter then many of the other bands of their genre. Part of it has to do with the fact that they are a great live band. This album proves that. Fans of the band say “Bayside is a Cult”. In some ways that is true, as Bayside has an extremely dedicated group of fans. Another reason that they are more unique then their contemporaries is that they have released an acoustic album which didn’t totally suck. It shows that the band can actually create interesting music outside of the “emo” genre.

Don’t get me wrong, if you are looking for groundbreaking music that pushes the limit of what can be done musically, this isn’t the album for you. If you’re looking for an album that is well-played with some great guitar solos from guitarist Jack O’Shea, then give it a shot. The fact is that Bayside is not the most original band to ever walk the earth, but they create some layered music in the studio that actually translates to the stage. This is reason enough to give the album a decent grade.

As mentioned, O’Shea really plays well on this record. He doesn’t really do anything that over the top; however his solo on the song The Walking Wounded is pretty good. To compare him to Frusicante or Matt Embree may be pushing it, but for what it is, he definitely has talent and this album highlights it. Singer Anthony Raneri has a better voice then many of his “emo” peers, and his ability to use his voice to create a vibe of emotion makes the music have some staying power once the album is over.

There are some negatives on this album besides the ones mentioned above. The sound quality was good…almost too good. It seems like that there was some studio enhancement on the record, since the crowd seemed to be at the perfect volume for the entire album. The cheering never made a dent in the reception of the instruments. Something seems a bit fishy there. The lack of originality is a bit off-setting as well. Still, Live at the Bayside Social Club is a pretty good record for the most part.

Grade---B-