Concert Review: Intervals @ Café Campus, February 22, 2018

Thursday, February 22nd brought us to Café Campus, where Intervals performed on their North American tour alongside Nick Johnston, and Jason Richardson.

Needless to say, the anticipation was quite high for when I was about to go to this show. It had been ages since I had been to a show since my injury in early July, where I dislocated my elbow, and I was not able to go anywhere for months. It is good to be back in the live music world. 

Making my way to the venue, I was listening to The Way Forward again to get a refresher of the songs, and as well preparing for my interview.

Genuinely excited when I was in Intervals' tour bus with Aaron Marshall, we had a discussion about the band, how much they have progressed over the years, and what challenges were faced with writing the newest album. 

Venturing forth inside the venue, it took longer for the show to start because one of the bands unfortunately had to drop due to conflict..

Nick Johnston went on stage, and he played the majority of the tracks from his newest album. I was quite surprised to find that he sounded like a younger Steve Vai from his guitar playing skills. All the songs were instrumental, and some had unique time signatures, polyrhythms, and catchy guitar licks; some were heavy, some were super soft. Consider me a new fan of Nick's music. 

Next up was Jason Richardson, who I was looking forward to see.

On stage were just two musicians, himself and Luke Holland, playing number of songs from I and a new song, "Tinnitus". It was a heavy song, and I liked how much bass drops that were utilized and that it shook the floor like crazy and how the execution was delivered.

I applaud. 

Last but not least, we have Intervals who finally hit the stage all loud and banging. Seeing the band after two years with Animals as headliners, they have definitely improved their performance skills, and as well as presence.

Opening the set with "Touch and Go" proved that Intervals was gonna bring the house down—and they did.

Taking the majority of the set from The Way Forward, it shows that ittranslates well into live form. Hearing the album live was a treat, and more dynamics characteristics come alive with the show. A few of the highlights was from the set were "Belvedere", "I'm Awake", "The Waterfront", and "Libra". What caught me totally off guard is that they played "Alchemy" and "Mata Hari" from In Time, which was bonkers to see live. I have never experienced such a heavy punch from chugging guitars—that literally made my jaw drop the whole time during the whole songs and it was such a blast to see.

Overall, Intervals put on quite a bonkers show. I didn't expect to see a few surprises from the set that night and I was very happy and impressed by how the coordination and team play that was shown on stage, of pure musicianship and technicality.