The Adicts – at House of Blues – Anaheim, CA

Friday night kicked off yet another Adicts experience for Orange County, only this time, House of Blues Anaheim would be hosting the show and the event would be all ages. While adjacent neighbors Disneyland and California Adventure provided the general public with playful cheers and activities, House of Blues would be doing the same, except with a Punk twist that involved beach balls and massive pounds of glitter and confetti.Friday night's performance was made possible with help from supporting acts Igor Spectre and Channel 3.

House of Blues opened its doors at 7 p.m. and promptly began the show at 8 p.m. with Los Angeles natives Igor Spectre. The band performed a short set that consisted of eclectic mixtures of classic rock, upbeat Punk, rockabilly riffs, and keyboards that conveyed the sounds of a vintage organ. Igor Spectre initiated early movement on the floor, but the crowd primarily stood and danced along to the band's spunky music. After Igor Spectre's set was over, Channel 3 hit the stage and began to play their set.

Channel 3 possessed many fans in the audience, and throughout the band's set, there were circle pits paying tribute to Channel 3's music. Channel 3 played a longer set than Igor Spectre, but the performance was also considerably short for the night. Fans were constantly shouting out requests from Channel 3, and the band members were responsive to their fans by interacting with them as the night went on. Channel 3 maintained a fast paced punk sound that brought out the energy of the audience inside the venue, ultimately prepping them for the night's headlining performance. After the band finished their set, the curtains were drawn and the venue began to get ready for The Adicts' enigmatic presence.

The curtains were drawn for a long time, and as fans waited for The Adicts to arrive on stage, the entire floor mutually began to pass the time by throwing random people up to crowd surf. For approximately 20 minutes, random individuals were lifted from different sides of the floor and made to crowd surf back and forth all across the floor. Every time a person successfully landed, the entire venue would cheer and clap together, and every time a person would end on a bad fall, everyone would laugh and shout out words of comic relief. The anxiety was easily perceived through this leisure time, and once the lights dimmed and the band's intro music was cued, everyone became silenced and ready for the madness to ensue.

When the curtains were opened up again, all the members of the band minus Monkey were present, and each member stood by with their instrument, smiling and waving at the loyal fans who crowded the venue. Keyboardist and violinist "Fiddle Dan"  began to play "Ode To Joy," and everyone on the floor began to pogo and bounce excessively.

Once Monkey made his way to the stage, the cheering became hysteric and the band then led their explosive intro into "Joker In The Pack."

During the first half of the band's set, the venue's floor was immensely full with bodies, and no circle pits were made possible throughout that time. During the latter half of the set however, many people had migrated out of the area, and the floor became more spacious, allowing room for sweaty and volatile circle pits that Adicts fans upheld with good intentions. The band performed fan favorites all night including "Numbers," "Angel," "Easy Way Out," "Let's Go," and "You're All Fools." The majority of the songs played derived from albums "Songs of Praise" and "Sound of Music."

After about an hour of playing, The Adicts ended their set with their renowned "Ode To Joy" outro, and after this happened, the band members remained on stage to wave goodbye, and then they walked off the stage. Fans began to chant and request an encore, and The Adicts arrived back on stage to give their fans a last treat for the night. During the encore, "Who Spilt My Beer" was performed, and when this happened, the beach balls were let loose, and the venue began to engage in a game of punk rock volleyball. After The Adicts' encore was over, the curtains drew to a close and the show was officially over.


Orange County's second round with The Adicts was a different experience from the previous night's bar experience, yet the band's younger fans did not fail to demonstrate to them their excitement, enthusiasm, and support Friday night. The band's theatrics and colorful display was yet another Disney-fused activity present on Disneyland territory, but definitely preferable for obvious reasons. The Adicts remarkably have the power to overwhelm even an entity as big as Disneyland.

 

-Stephanie M.-
Senior Staff Reporter

                   More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 

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