I haven’t seen Dance Gavin Dance in A MINUTE. Probably not since before the pandemic, if I’m remembering correctly without looking it up on the blog because I’m too lazy. I was still keeping up with them on the periphery, enough to know that Tilian was kicked out for SA accusations, allowed back in when the accusations were allegedly disproved. I always default to siding with the accuser/victim and this one was extra weird so I thought it was kind of strange when everything was “cleared” and swept under the rug.  Anyway, then he left (whether on his own or by force, I don’t know) again in 2024.

Tilian had actually become their most stable singer, lasting longer than Jonny and Kurt’s years combined. (Probably—I’m just doing that amazing blog-journalist thing I do where I’m making sweeping speculations without bothering to research but as someone who has been a fan of DGD since 2007, this seems like it’s plausible.) I remember when Tilian replaced Jonny (after his second reign as DGD vocal king)–fans were skeptical at best. I knew Tilian from Tides of Man so I was happy about the decision and he quickly won me over. In fact, even though Downtown Battle Mountain with Jonny Craig remains my favorite DGD album, Tilian actually became my favorite frontman.

The new singer is Andrew Wells, formerly of Eidola, but he had already been in DGD for 10+ years, even the last time I saw them live, he was there as the touring guitarist. So, it makes sense that DGD would be like, “OK Andrew, you’re up” rather than going through the process of bringing in a new singer from the outside again.

I listened to some of the newer stuff with him doing vocals and actually kind of thought he SORT OF sounds similar to Tilian. It’s not a jarring change. And when I saw that they’re currently touring with a Pittsburgh stop, I felt inspired to get tickets. I mean, I have seen them with every singer up until now so I have to keep the streak going, right?

Henry in the merch line, lol

Show was at Stage AE. I haven’t been there in a long time and it felt completely foreign to me. Chooch dropped us off and door hadn’t opened yet so we had to stand in a long-ish line that had snaked around the building. People-watching was interesting—a mix of old and young fans. It kind of felt like standing in line for Warped Tour again so that felt nice, but there was also something making me feel awkward, like I was a n00b. I guess I have just been away from the scene a long time at this point.

Meanwhile, I knew the answers to questions that were being asked in two different conversations around me and had to step on my toes to keep from being a Mrs. Buttinski, Paging Mrs. Buttinski.

Anyway, the guy right behind me was SNORFLING BIGLY and I was so anguished by this, like how was this happening to me at two back-to-back events?! Luckily, once we got inside, we were nowhere near him again.

Let’s go through the rest bulletpoint-style because I’m going to get too wordy/weird/emotional and no one has time for that.

• I was standing at the railing on the main level above the pit. I’ve been to enough DGD shows to not need to do barricade or risk getting elbowed in the head
• The two women next to me were…OK. The one didn’t speak to me even once but her friend was relatively cool. It was almost the perfect spot until some broad arrived with her idiot bitch 6-year-old. Apparently it was his bday and DGD is his favorite band, so she asked the other two women if he could slide in next to them and get a spot at the railing. I was NOT going to let this bump me from my spot, so now I had to stand sideways in the corner of the railed area. It was really uncomfortable and then MOM wanted to chat with the women the whole time and as soon as they all started talking about how much they love Falling In Reverse, I knew all I needed to know.

• The opening band was Novelists from France. HOLY. SHIT. Yes to this. Yes to the dress. Yes to all of it. Camille is a breath of fresh air! Beautiful vocals and then seamlessly dips right into monstrous growling. I loved it. New fan alert.

• Wolf and Bear was next. I liked them a lot too! I did know who they were prior to this though. Women next to me chatted liberally (have a feeling they’re not liberals though) through the whole set.
• After this, Henry went to check out the food sitch and was gone for an eternity. I kept looking back for him like A WEAK WOMAN LOST W/O HER MAN (j/k I was just getting pissed because he claimed he was going to get a pretzel and I wanted some), Anyway, then I noticed that he was talking to Mychael from Sugarspell Scoops! I had to laugh because it’s been about a year since the last time we ran into Mychael at a show (the Anthony Green / Kurt Travis / Geoff Rickley show at Jergel’s last summer). He gave Henry the scoop (OH, A PUN) related to the future of Sugarspell (it’s looking bright!) and then told him that he has actually never seen DGD but was there because he booked the next band’s (Horse the Band) first show in Pgh 20 years ago! It was a house show in Castle Shannon. Then he invited Henry (hopefully me too but people usually only remember Henry’s existence and not mine) to a show he and one of his bands are doing next week at the Shred Shed. I asked Henry if he said we’d go and he said he didn’t commit to anything but I would totally go.
• Then Henry came back with a DGD poster :) I also got TWO shirts because I’m spoiled.

• Horse the Band was crazy and I loved it. They have a hype man in booty shorts who plays the triangle and does the actual most with what God has given him. That man was in the crowd almost constantly!  He ran past us twice but I missed him on video both times—he was just too fast.

• And then DGD. Sigh. Thoughts:
  • I wasn’t AS emotional as expected but I did get choked up with they did some DBM throwbacks and at one point I turned to Henry for emotional support and he was nowhere to be found. He told me later that he was leaning against a wall and “wasn’t that far” from me OK GREAT but the point is that he wasn’t where I needed him to be!??!?!
  • I still love Jon Mess with my whole fucking heart.
  • Matt Mingus is still one of the most underrated drummers in the world.
  • Will Swan <3
  • Andrew is…good. He can perform the old stuff well. But, something was missing. Charisma? He kind of felt game show host-y to me?  Is this a sign that my DGD days are over?
  • There was some short bitch behind me with the most blood-curdling scream and look, I HAVE BEEN TO MANY KPOP SHOWS. This bitch gave some of those vocal cords a run for their money. I wanted to hit her—literally kept visualizing it in my mind.
  • I have actually never had a bad experience with fans at DGD shows before but something about that night was off-putting to me. Between feeling like it was a brand new scene, like I got left behind, and the unfamiliarity of Andrew Wells on vocals, I just felt WEIRD. I was actually like 0.O when they came back out for encore and said they had 3 more songs because I kind of….just wanted it to be over. Do you know how nuts it is for me to say that? ME?? STRAWBERRY GIRL?! It’s interesting, because I was out of the loop for Cold even longer and yet, I don’t feel like this with that band, those fans. It kind of feels like it’s still 2001, in the very best way. I guess things change and you either adapt or move on. Sigh.

Ugh, this was one of my favorite songs of 2008, but with Kurt Travis and Nic Newsham* singing it, obviously.

*(Gatsby’s American Dream reunited and ofc aren’t coming to Pgh.)

• OMG Camille came out to sing Inspire the Liars and killed it. That’s one of my absolute favorite DGD songs. LET’S START A RELIGION.

I love that Henry immediately frames my posters when he get home from concerts.

So yeah, that was my first time seeing DGD in at least 7 years. I feel so strange. Obviously it always conjures recessive Christina sadness too since she was the only friend I had who loved DGD with me and I associate so much Jonny Craig stuff with her dumb ass. I hate that I let this get to me.

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I was opening up to Chooch about this in the car on the drive home from Waldameer last night, how I had talked to my therapist about the weird combination of emotions I felt while watching DGD, like one part of me was the gatekeeper, looking around and wondering, “Yeah, but were these people at the 2008 show at Mr. Smalls?” (NOT EVEN THEIR FIRST SHOW, FYI!! Just the first one I ever went to in Pgh, so STFU Erin). Meanwhile, another part of me felt like I didn’t belong there anymore, like I was a poser. Of course, my therapist was like, “No, you’re not a poser! If anything, you have been a fan longer than most of the people there, most likely!”

Meanwhile, my blunt, “supportive” son goes, “Well yeah, you can’t just, like, come back in like that after being away for so long.”

WOW.

THANKS FOR ALWAYS REAFFIRMING MY FEELINGS OF INADEQUACY, DEAR SON.

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