A ROARING NIGHT TO REMEMBER

Seattle is well known for its booming rock scene and supportive venues, helping artists from all over make it to the top. Little did we know that heavy-pop band, based from Seattle, The Home Team would be growing up overnight. They started their US tour in Salt Lake City and shows sold out in minutes. 20 Sold out dates, Seattle included. They toured with what fans called ‘the holy trinity’ of bands. With them along for this god-tier tour was female fronted rock band Honey Revenge and punk-rock band Broadside. Broadside last visited Seattle in 2017. It was well overdue for them to return. Thursday night turned out to be quite the night for Neumos, Seattle Washington.

The first opener of the night was rock band Honey Revenge. They rang in the energy that carried the rest of the night. The first song of the night was “Airhead” which was noticeably the most sang along-to song of the night. Lead singer Devin loved interacting with audience members. It created an intimate moment between performer and fan. Throughout the night,  guitarist Donny and bassist Tay would often dance and perform at each other. You could tell they were having the time of their lives on stage, doing what they love. The third song of the night was “Rerun” which was another fan-favorite. But what really brought the hype was their newest release “Worst Apology” performed live. When bands perform a new song live, it just hits different, a good kind of different. This band is the type of band to be your  hype-band. Their stage presence is through the roof with the way they played their songs and performed. Overall, Honey Revenge brought the good vibes and hyped the crowd up for the next performance.

Then came on Broadside. Seeing them on stage felt like a highschool reunion. Hard to believe they performed in Seattle six years ago when they were on tour with Real Friends during their Spring tour. Frontman Oliver Baxxter made his entrance  and opened with “Heavenly”, which is easily one of their most popular songs aside from “Coffee Talk” which was the second song on the setlist. The energy in the room was off the charts with the occasional crowd surfer making their way to front stage only to jump off the stage. At one point Donny from Honey Revenge was caught surfing. This was the third to last day of tour, so it was only right that the performances were unhinged (safely, of course). The crowd was hype as they could be, singing along to every lyric. With a sold out show, everyone was packed-in shoulder to shoulder. Not a single member had a care in the world as they were having the time of their lives, singing their hearts out. Bassist Patrick Diaz was caught doing his famous spin from time to time and playing as backup vocalist. At one point, there had been a perfectly synced spin from both Patrick and guitarist Domenic Reid. Broadside had released a new song featuring Brian Butcher, lead singer of The Home Team, called “Cruel”. Seattle had the honor of hearing it live since the release. The special treat of the night was having Brian come out and join for his featuring moment in the song. Half way through their set, it was time to chill the vibes for a moment. Oliver and Domenic sat down on stools and played their acoustic song “I Love You, I Love You, It’s Disgusting” and had the whole crowd using their phone flashlights as lighters. Although there had been an actual lighter brought out and a lighter phone app, which was pretty creative. The rest of the night carried on and Broadside ended their set with “Foolish Believer”. If there is one thing that is for sure, it’s that Broadside is always a treat to see live. They are not the type of band to chill out to as their crowds tend to be the rowdy type.

It was time. The main show of the night. The Home Team playing in their hometown.  The crowd was ready, everyone shuffled forward to be as close to the stage as they could get. Lights went down and fog had started to disperse across the venue. Drummist Daniel Matson, followed by guitarist John Baran and bassist Ryne Olson took their places. They began the opening to “Watching All Your Friends Get Rich” and frontman Brian Butcher came up to open up one of the best shows in town. Once again, this band is not the type to catch if you’re looking for a chill vibe. They are the complete opposite. The Home Team is a heavy-pop band, and addresses themselves for ‘real rockers only’. And the real rockers came through for this band. There were a lot of frequent fliers, a.k.a repeating crowd surfers. The fan favorite of the night is when Brian whistles a very small portion of “Sails”, which was performed. The stage setup changed so that Brian could perform an acoustic version of “She’s Quiet” while resting his voice for a brief moment. He received his bigfoot coffee mug with his favorite tea inside it and called this ‘tea time with Brian’.  It’s no shocker that a Washington state based band would have a bigfoot mug on hand. A few more songs had gone by, you could still feel the crowd’s energy pumping through the venue like rushing waters. Towards the end of the setlist, Pat came back out and did a little metal screamo set with Ryne which was one of the many hypest moments Seattle experienced. The set had ended for the night and the post-show emotions set in for everyone. Overall, this night was one for the books. This band has great things in store for them and it is only going to get better for them and their future.

Keep up with The Home Team at https://linktr.ee/thehometeam_

Honey Revenge at https://honeyrevenge.merchnow.com

Broadside at https://broadsidemerch.com

PHOTOS BY SHAY REICHOW