In an effort to get back to something resembling a concert, and supporting artists as best I can, Friday evening I sidled up to my laptop to watch Anberlin perform their album Cities in its entirety. Was it my favorite thing? No. Was the music good? Absolutely. This was my first livestream concert, so keep reading to catch my thoughts on the experience!
A fairly cheap ticket, coupled with one of my favorite early high school bands playing a record I loved seemed like a no-brainer to support. And I’m glad I did! I saw them live one several years back, so this is my only other encounter with Anberlin in a “live” setting. They sounded fantastic from start to finish. My favorite songs off the record were “There Is No Mathematics to Love and Loss” and “Alexithymia,” but I really enjoy the entire track list. You almost never catch bands playing a whole album from front to back, so this was a nice opportunity to hear songs I like without any of the songs from their catalogue I don’t necessarily care for.
Shot in black in white and dressed in all white, the result was a very eye-catching aesthetic! Apparently the all white clothing was drummer, Nate Young’s idea, and I agree with him that it looked cool! It also helped them stand out a lot more. I imagine if they’d worn anything else they’d either blend in or get totally lost in the changing backgrounds and light work. They were also staggered just so, so that the viewer was able to see each member when the shot went wide. I’m not sure who is all involved in getting their livestream to the screen, but they did a great job of alternating between full band shots and close-ups of each member.
Another neat thing that was done in between most songs, was they tried to interact with fans via a live chat that was active throughout the entire performance. Based on how quickly they were showing up on my screen, it was a wonder they could read any of them. They also discussed the making of the album, their favorite tracks, the touring for the record, and any regrets they may have had. Nate and Stephen kept questioning why they chose the track list to go in the order it did. Retrospection has them thinking it sounds all wrong. They also thought the ending of “Reclusion” was a bit goofy. Fun to learn!
Overall, the experience was pleasant, and a decent replacement for concerts in the time of a pandemic. Would I have rather seen this in person? You bet. And I hope someday soon this can happen! Every once in a while the stream would buffer, but not enough to make me irritable, so I’d call that a success. This was Anberlin’s third livestream, but they are taking a short break before getting back together to play the rest of their discography in full. Depending on certain circumstances, I’ll probably tune in! My recommendation to you is to check in with your favorite bands and see if they’ve got anything similar coming up – could be fun!