Millencolin
Live @ Henry Fonda Theater, Hollywood, CA, 5/21/05 and House of Blues, Anaheim, CA, 5/22/05
It's been two years since Millencolin has been on the West Coast and I, being the requisite fan, was looking forward to seeing them. Something about seeing a band two nights in a row sounds kinda boring but it was nothing but. The bands that opened for Millencolin on their little trek across the West were Roses Are Red, A Thorn For Every Heart and Boys Night Out. I wasn't really impressed with seeing three bands that were all five-pieces and it was really hard to decide if it was a cruel joke of sorts. Oh well, at least some of the kids there were into them.
Then came the headliners.
Millencolin burst onto the stage with energy and the crowd responded accordingly. They played about four songs off of their latest release "Kingwood" and also peppered the a-little-over-an-hour long set both nights with songs from "Same old tunes", "Life on a plate", "For monkeys and "Pennybridge pioneers". In-between song banter between guitarists Erik Ohlsson and Mathias Färm and bassist Nikola Sarcevic were lively and entertaining. I'm not sure how many times my neck became a target for crowd surfers during the Henry Fonda show but it was worth being up close and personal with the band. The crowd for both shows were very different. For some reason, all the idiots that throw stuff at bands during their set decided to show up for the Anaheim show. Whatever. I had fun meeting them on Saturday, having my glasses knocked off and smashed to bits, getting a random drunk guy putting his arm around me after that show and seeing them put up with flying shoes and water bottles on Sunday. Good times all around.
- Navy Keophan