Ok, any fans of the Freshmen here? If so, then you already know about their live show, and probably could give your own opinion on it. However, if you do not know the Army of Freshmen, then continue reading. I have followed the Ventura boys for a while now, and have seen countless shows. But AOF was not the only act playing, so I will start at the beginning.

The Kick is a band I had never heard or seen before, so I had no expectations going into this opening act. Unfortunately, the venue was terrible at getting people in, and I only heard their act, and was not able to physically see the performance. These guys sounded decent, nothing special, but not bad. If you have been to many small, local shows, then this is the typical opening band—everyone can play their instruments, but there is not much to differentiate between them and any other garage band out there.

Since the show was headlined by a local favorite, the Ventura based Army of Freshmen played second. What I like about these guys is the energy they put out in the show. This crowd was not totally into the big energy and jumping around thing, but it was a good set nonetheless. Chris (lead singer) likes to get the crowd involved as much as possible, and will often jump out and let the fans sing the words along with the band. If you like high energy, fun, poppy shows, these guys will not disappoint; but if you want your rock to be serious, you might want to wait for the headliner.

Tooth and Nail records…ring a bell? MxPx, Juliana Theory…ya the label that is known for religious punk rock. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am not for or against religion in music, it is all personal preference, and if it is good music, who cares if it is religious or not. Anyways, Watashi Wa is definitely a very talented band, with a big future in store for them. I had never heard them before, so for the first song or two, I just sat back and took in the feel of what their music was about. Once again, great musicians, but that is about all I did the whole time—just hang back and listen to the music. This is a great experience, and very relaxing; but if you are looking for a pumped up performance, this is not it. Basically, if you want to see a show for the music, Watashi is a great band for that, but if you want to just go loose and jump around, I would say AOF is a better choice for that.