Everything You Want
Alternative-rock band Vertical Horizon headlined a solid display of rock music at The Westcott Theater last night.
You may recall the group bursting into the mainstream at the tail end of the 1990s with the hit single ‘Everything You Want’ off the album with the same name. The band’s song list spanned the band’s entire career. Older songs were mixed with some from the group’s newest album, and the wide spectrum of songs served to benefit them. These guys definitely knew how to perform, and although they are widely regarded as a one-hit wonder, they’ve churned out six records and are still rocking out.
A few other bands played before Vertical Horizon took over. Local band Silent Fury opened and the trio played six songs total, with a notable upbeat tune called ‘Kick Down My Door.’ If you like bands like Eve 6, you may enjoy these guys. Lead singer Mick Fury switched it up with both acoustic and electric guitar, and exhibited good vocal range.
The next act, Clayton Senne, was a solid prelude to the headline act. Senne is a talented young keyboardist with a voice reminiscent of Gavin DeGraw. He and his band jazzed up the night with an excellent cover of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition.’
The crowd steadily increased by the time Senne finished up. During the layover between his act and Vertical Horizon’s, most of the people had moved closer to the stage. As anticipation built, Mark Vanluven remembered his hour and a half drive from Rochester to see Vertical Horizon for the first time.
‘It’s worth it. I’ve never seen them live,’ Vanluven said. ‘They were scheduled to come to Syracuse and Buffalo, so I had to make the trip.’
Vanluven first got into Vertical Horizon when he heard ‘Everything You Want,’ and started collecting more of the group’s albums. He even brought a copy of Vertical Horizon’s newest CD, ‘Burning the Days,’ with him to the show.
For the group’s opening number, some brooding, atmospheric, sci-fi like music encompassed the theater, and the stage lay desolate for about a minute or so. Front man Matt Scannell then came on stage with the other members and they jumped right into ‘All Is Said and Done,’ the opening track off their new album.
Vertical Horizon’s second song was recognized by the vast majority of the audience, and a lot of smiles and nostalgia crept into the theatre. With ‘You’re a God,’ Vertical Horizon pleased the audience and Scannell saved some lyrics for the crowd. ‘You’re a God’ is probably Vertical Horizon’s other ‘hit’ and it’s also on the soundtrack of the Jim Carrey comedy ‘Bruce Almighty.’
Their next songs were ‘Send it Up’ and ‘The Lucky One,’ the latter being off the new album. Both songs were solid: ‘The Lucky One’ had a catchy guitar melody at the beginning and then the rest of the instruments followed suit.
Guitar player Keith Kane took vocals on the next song off the ‘Everything You Want’ record. Caine’s voice differed from Scannell’s in that it was more nasally, but they really rocked hard on this tune. Drummer Jason Sutter displayed impressive bass drum talent with an awesome solo at the end.
They continued the night with ‘Liberty,’ one of their earliest songs from their very first record in 1992. Vanluven noted that Vertical Horizon started out as a folk-type band and then turned more to rock. ‘Liberty’ is indeed a folk song, and it was a nice change-up from the previous songs.
As the night neared completion, Vanluven was more than satisfied. ‘They sound good live. If I had to do it all over again, I’d love to be that guy working the sound board. I know what sounds good, and these guys sounded great.’
No matter what kind of rock music you’re into, there’s no doubt that Vertical Horizon hits all the right notes. After 17 years and six records, these guys still put on a good show.
Published on October 26, 2009 at 12:00 pm
