Hard rocking Prom Kings!
Boasting a rather excess amount of members with a total of six, Army Of Freshmen are a band with something truly different, and many of the crowd have come here to see this excellent band from Ventura, California.
Starting off with the fast paced song, 'Uniforms' from their 2004 album, 'Beg, Borrow, Steal' you realise just how much energy this band has, from the tuneful harmonies from Keyboardist, Owen, to the jumping around Hardcore dancing of main vocalist Chris, who along with Kai and Aaron, jump around the hyperactive kids on invisible pogosticks. With many of the band members comfortable singing it gives the band a number of options, as well as giving Chris a chance to look at many members of the audience, giving them personal 'hellos' whilst trying to steal their jewellery and shake hands. At one point he takes someone's glasses and proceeds to dance around with them on his head for a song before handing them back.
There is the great crowd chanting from the chorus in, 'Get Um Up', which have the band and the crowd jumping up and down again. We have the keyboard-laced 80's rock of 'At The End Of The Day' which shows the bridge between Glam and Pop/Punk with more than a passing resemblance to Pretty Boy Floyd.
After 'Wrinkle In Time', the band slow things down. "You know," Chris Jay says, turning sideways and pushing his nose up. "Most of us think that Ox-Ford is a little bit, snobbish!" and to this the crowd cheers, though I suspect anyway that people fitting this description would not be in this venue watching four loud bands perform! Most of the songs are fast paced Pop/Punk, possibly the slowest is the mid-tempo, New Found Glory-esque 'Julia', and this is the one that Army Of Freshmen finish with.
This is third time that Army Of Freshmen have been on a bill that I've been to. The first time I missed them by still being in a London restaurant as the opened for Bowling For Soup in 2005; earlier in February of this year I was struck down with man-flu so unable to see them again when they opened up the 'Get Happy Tour' for Bowling For Soup, however after finally seeing them tonight I am glad that I did. This 'Good To Go' tour has each band taking turns to headline, and seeing as Army Of Freshmen were the second of the four acts tonight, for me they were the strongest, I guess the gig that they headline will be even better. Top marks lads!