Everyday Sunday
2/2/07, at Warehouse 54, Manheim, PA
Inclement weather is a surefire way to kill the attendance of a live show. On Friday, February 2nd, 2007,
some light snow and icy conditions paved our two hour drive from Bethlehem to Manheim, Pennsylvania. When
we rolled into the slush-covered parking lot of Warehouse 54, we were amazed to find a mere half a dozen cars
in the parking lot. We entered the venue, which contained a modest crowd, to find the local opening acts still
warming up as the Warehouse crew stalled a bit in hopes for a larger turnout. While maybe one or two others
trickled in before the opening bands took the spotlight, the audience was a slim one, and we were glad we'd braved
to elements to come out and support the fine lads of Ohio in Everyday Sunday.
Warehouse 54 has a pretty intimate setup. It was the first time I had been there, but it brought me back to
my youth group days where piling kids into a hangout-friendly place like that was the norm. It has a great small
concert atmosphere, with a pool table, air hockey table, kitchen area, diner booths, couches, and more to create
a great place for good, clean fun. The biggest problem that it did present, however, was poor sound for the
local openers After This and Between The Two. Their sets were brief but the sound was painfully loud (and
not a "good" loud, mind you. I'm not an "it's too loud" kind of old yet). Whether their poor sound quality was
to blame for less than impressive performances or not, it seemed a long wait before the main act was set to
perform, and their professionalism stood out rather drastically.
The pop/punk rock foursome started their ten-song set with "Take Me Out," one of the many new songs they'd play.
Their new songs are fun and catchy with a youthful energy but with mature songwriting. Offering pop/punk for those who
may like the vibe it carries but don't necessarily like the frivolousness that comes with much of the music
in the genre, Everyday Sunday seems to have found their niche with their upcoming record Wake Up! Wake Up!.
The new songs continued on with "Apathy For Apologies" and then the title track from the new album.
"Gypsy Girl," from their previous album Anthems For The Imperfect, served as a quick interruption
from the flow of new songs before the band dove into their infectiously catchy break up anthem "I'll Get Over
It (Miss Elaineous)." The lead off track from Wake Up! Wake Up! was next, "Let's Go Back," followed by
four ES classics. "Stand Up," the title track from their debut, was a nice inclusion, along with the melodic
encouraging ballad "Hanging On." Their set closed with "Comfort Zone" and "I Wish I Could Say" from Anthems,
the former of which incorporated crowd participation that didn't work as well with such a small and rather
tame audience. I gotta hand it to the guys for giving it their all despite the small numbers. If you would
have watched the show without seeing how many were in attendance, you wouldn't have imagined that no more than fifteen
to twenty people were there.
Battling crummy weather and a meager crowd, Everyday Sunday was faithful to overcome the odds with their
brand of spirit and sincerity-filled pop rock music. Always out to provide a good time and present the Gospel
to their listeners in an inviting way, you can be sure an Everyday Sunday show will be a good one -- and worth a trek through
stormy weather.
-- John DiBiase, 2/14/07
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