Thursday night, Manchester Orchestra and The Front Bottoms ended their two-night residency at The Fillmore, and I don’t know what i expected, honestly. I’m not the most avid listener of either band, and at most I expected an excitable, punky alt-rock show.

What I got was a heavy rock show thanks to both acts.

And it was awesome.

The Front Bottoms took the stage first Thursday, after closing the Wednesday night show, and the absolute carefree energy that singer Brian Sella brings to the stage is unparalleled. Odds are, if you can’t name a Front Bottoms Song, you can recognize the sound of his voice. There are few bands who stand alone in their sound, but these guys are one of them. The half spoken/half shouted, gruelingly specific lyrics and manic acoustic guitar are just a couple of their calling cards, but they’re almost enough to define what TFB is all about.

Their setlist was all over the place, pulling from older tracks like “The Plan (Fuck Jobs)," “Peace Sign,” and “Twin Sized Mattress.” They also played a brand new track, “End of Summer (now I know),” and I promise you there was not a still body in the room. It was impossible not to shout along with Sella while he sang about maps on walls and fading seasons and getting high with his friends. If you can’t relate to his music as a twenty-something living in a city like Philadelphia, I suggest you listen harder and take his advice and just let go a little.

Manchester Orchestra, copyright Dylan Eddinger Photography

But when Manchester Orchestra took the stage, I think I was blinded. They opened with “The Maze” followed immediately by “The Moth,” and the lighting behind them was spectacular and pulsating and angry. I’d pegged these guys for a pop rock band at best after only hearing “The Gold” on Radio 104.5 about one hundred times, but let me tell you. They are not. They bring a serious, authentic, rockstar energy. Their live sound is full or warring guitar and bass and crystal clear vocals in that completely recognizable tone that Manchester O is known for. Singer Andy Hull’s voice falls in the higher range, with a timbre that is unprecedented for a rock band. That’s the factor that always threw me off in categorizing them, and it’s one of their strongest assets.

Touring for their latest release, A Black Mile to the Surface, the setlist consisted of mostly those songs. My favorite song of the night was without a doubt “The Alien.” It’s beautiful both live and recorded, and the emotion that fills each band member is such an experience to watch.

One thing I was surprised by was the fact that Manchester Orchestra and The Front Bottoms released a song together called “Allentown,” and they didn’t play it. Sort of disappointing, because it’s an awesome song and this was the perfect opportunity for fans to hear it live. But oh well. The show in its entirety was definitely not disappointing, and I’m glad I can finally tick both bands off my bucket list.

Manchester Orchestra is actually a heavy rock band and The Fillmore was very okay with that

PHILLY LIVE

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