Live Review & Photos: The Trews @ The Saint 7-26-12

The Trews’ current single, “One by One,” is a depiction of life on the road as a touring band. The message is ever so salient in the first verse; “I’m cold and lonely in the afterglow. An empty bar and uninspired show.” Despite Mother Nature’s rainy, humid, and bitchy attitude that evening, I’d say that, if that lyric is based upon the band’s personal experience, they certainly didn’t play the part. The Trews were unbelievable at The Saint in Asbury Park. In fact, I’d say that their performance was totally inspired. These guys deserved a packed house (even though the weather seemed to deter a few people from coming out), were consummate professionals, and played their hearts out. I absolutely love the “Hope and Ruin” record and, based on that, my expectations of the Trews’ live set were beyond the clouds. They played a fiery set of high-energy hits like “Poor Old Broken Hearted Me,” “Hold Me In Your Arms,” and “Paranoid Freak.” They were confident enough to play some great tunes from “Hope and Ruin” without saturating the set with the most recent release. I wasn’t at all surprised when I heard, both, Colin and John-Angus MacDonald really singing their asses off. However, I was absolutely blown away by the vocal abilities of each member of the band. The four-part harmonies are a rare feature these days, especially when they’re damn near perfect. The Trews don’t come around these parts too often and, if the rain had deterred you from making the trip, shame on you. These guys deserve to be all over American radio and I can’t wait to be say, “I told you so” when I see you at their next New Jersey show.

- Matt Colligan

Photos by Lazlo
(click on photo to see full size)

The Trews

The Red Desert

Flatleaver