From Ashes to New Blackout Tour Part 2 hit the Wind Creek Event Center in Bethlehem, PA. This was a jam packed show with 5 artists on the bill. From past experience I usually cringe at a 5 band bill. Normally the performaces feel too short and the audiences are thin until the main act comes on. I was pleasantly suprised by the entire show. No one was short changed and the audience showed up at doors and stayed strong until the very end. There was a moment of concern whether or not this show would even happen since From Ashes to New had bus trouble earlier in the day and had to rent a box truck and car to make ir from upstate NY to eastern PA in a few hours. They pulled in at about 4:45 had to unload, set up and sound check in a very quick manner. The doors were held a bit and the show started about 20 minutes late but they pulled it off.
The Blackout Tour Part 2 included Elijah, Phix, EKOH, Point North and From Ashes to New. Since From Ashes to New is a rock/rap band they brought out a blend of acts who complement both of their styles.
Elijah newer rock artist that's heading up the charts with songs like "Virus", "Hostage" and "Enemies". All of which were performed. All in all he performed 7 songs armed with two guitarist and a drummer. Guitarist Xander was amazingly entertaining dancing and blowing bubbles the whole time. Elijah got the crowd pumped up and got a small circle pit going before the end of his set.
Elijah
Next up was Phix a blended rocker and rapper. He's also been running up the charts of Octane especially with his collaboration with fellow tour mate EKOH. We were treated to a live performance of the song "Doomed" which was really awesome. Phix performed 8 songs during his supercharged set. With the lead in of Elijah the crowd was already getting rowdy. The sea of crowd surfers began and didnt stop for the next 3 hours. Phix also had a unique feature to his band, his drummer, 11 year old Bronx Sandoval. This kid was tight, focused, happy and doing stick tricks. He has a long career ahead of him.
Phix
Now onto the hip/hop part of the night from artist EKOH. In pure hip/hop fashion EKOH performed only with a DJ that spun his music and sang along with him. EKOH performed 10 songs and even had time to squeeze in an engagement on stage between a couple of fans. EKOH also got up close and personal with his fans while performing "Villian". He walked on the hands of the crowd then crowd surfed out and back. The fans had a pit half the with of the venue at this point, everyone was just having a blast.
EKOH
Normally after this many bands I would be fatigued and ready to head on out but there was just so much vibrant electricty from the crowd, I was energized and ready for Point North to hit the stage. Point North brought some heavy riffs, catchy vocals, and crazy stage energy. The amount of crowd surfers was actaully insane during their performance. They perfomed a 12 song set that included their newest single "Bring Me Down" as well as some older material like "Ghost in My Home" and "Stitch Me Up".
Point North
A few hours later and we were all ready for From Ashes to New. Since these guys had a crazy ass day I wasn't sure how much energy they would have left for their perfomance. Well the answer was a lot. You'd never know they almost missed the show. They were energized, happy to be "home" and ready to "rock". These guys tore up the venue for 16 songs. They played 8 out of the 16 songs from their newest album Blackout. Singer/rapper/band founder Matt Brandyberry took a chunk of time before "Barely Breathing" to have a heartfelt chat with the crowd. He asked who was from PA and he said he was born and raised in a the small town of Elizabethtown, where if you grow up with a dream you're supposed to let it die. He talked about starting the band in 2013 and how people said mixing rock and rap wasn't cool and here we are now and everyone is mixing rock and rap, I guess it must be cool. He also went on to talk about having a new son and how hard it was to leave him for tour, that every time he goes home, he was a new person that he didn't know.
After Matt's speach they jumped rith back into the music and the mayhem and the crowd surfering ensued. While the venue was only about half full this crowd made the band feel as if it was the biggest show of their lives and I was thrilled to be part of this experience. It's not always about the size of the crowd but the crowd themselves. Every fan made this show incredible and that's what giving back to an artist is all about.
This was such an epic night of diverse music. The bands were sensational and the crowd was amazing. This was a night that no one will soon forget.
From Ashes to New
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