Trial - The Vera Project in Seattle - 4/22/09

What an awesome and crazy show. I love standing just behind where the stage-divers land so I don't get hurt, but I still get to witness the craziness up front. At least one guy got totally knocked out and another had a bloody face or nose. I know it sounds cheesy, but singer Greg Bennick spoke between songs about a lot of things important to the band, like using the energy and feeling from a show like that one to inspire yourself and transform the world around you. He talked about the Vera Project and how that venue is living proof that we can all find inspiration in ideas and make them into something real. For the most part, he keeps a very positive edge to his message which is rare in hardcore. If he was some sort of atheist minister, I'd totally go to his church. The dude knows how to speak and how to motivate.

I only got 3.5 hours of sleep the next night before working, but it was totally worth it. This was my second time seeing them, and they are easily the most intense, inspirational band in the history of hardcore (as I know it, anyway).

Here's the night's setlist I nabbed from http://xstuckinthepastx.blogspot.com