ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS + Moneen + Meligrove Band @ Spectrum

By Hallie Seline - 01/28/2006

Going into this concert, I was a little hesitant about what to expect. Yes, I admit to owning the All-American Rejects' first album the moment it came out in Grade 9. I even admit to possibly listening to it non-stop for a solid two months. With their freakishly catchy songs and scruffy good looks, indeed, I was an active member of the 15-year-old girl fan base. However, as my musical tastes began to expand and as the band had begun to look like it was just another one-hit wonder boy band, I was really surprised to see them rejoin the world with another album. Nostalgically remembering my prime years, I was kind of excited to see if they were more than just a one-trick pony band.

After my last concert, I had immediately fallen in love with the Spectrum venue. However, it took me a while to adjust to the climate change from a sea of excessively emo-looking kids to pretty much a herd of sickeningly trendy 15-year-old girls. The Meligrove Band were the first to take the stage and sent an almost Beatle-esque effect over the crowd, i.e. tons of girls screaming at the top of their lungs, going buck-wild. Their sound was really catchy with an almost Elvis-like rock and roll manner to it. They reminded me of that cute bunch of high school boys who form a band, practice in their garage or basement and perform in the school auditorium. The second band Moneen kicked things into high gear with their ultra-energetic stage presence and hard-hitting songs. It was a bit surprising to hear an Alexisonfire-type band after the first one, but the crowd was as into them as they had been into The Meligrove Band, which was nice to see. The lead singer was an instant crowd-pleaser. He was running from side to side on the stage and doing these crazy jumps, which really amped us up for the band of the night, The All-American Rejects.

As soon as Nick Wheeler (guitar), Tyson Ritter (vocals/bass), Mike Kennerty (guitar) and Chris Gaylor (drums) set foot on the stage and began to play their latest hit "Dirty Little Secret", the crowd immediately started to go crazy, both screaming and singing along at the top of their lungs. Throughout their performance, they played both songs from their first album, including the classics like "Swing Swing" and "Paper Heart" as well as many songs from their second and newest album, Move Along. Now I’m not sure whether I have just been living in oblivion for the past few months or I simply haven’t caught on to the resurrection of The All-American Rejects, but I have to say, I was really surprised to see that pretty much every single person in this venue was singing almost every word from each of the new songs on their second album. Let me also just say how ridiculous and how much of a an old fogey you feel like when you are sitting in the balcony for an All-American Rejects concert and all you want to do is yell out for them to play some old stuff. Regardless, I was pleasantly surprised at their strong, energetic performance and especially Ritter’s clear and powerful vocals. They proved themselves once again to me as much more than a one-hit wonder band. Their second album shows growth and expanding their previous musical limitations, all of which were clearly shown at the concert. I walked away feeling a little more youthful and with my faith restored in another catchy band with more things to offer than just singles and scruffy good looks.

[Hallie is a freelance reviewer for CJLO.com and is too good for internet radio]