On Sunday November 13th the third annual Four Chord Music Festival took place at Club Xtaza in the Strip District! This show is quickly becoming a tradition for the Pittsburgh punk music scene. In years past, the headliners have been The Wonder Years and Yellowcard and this year the show was headlined by Mayday Parade.
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This year’s show had a great balance of local bands as well as touring national acts. Along with Mayday Parade as the headliner, Hawthorn Heights, Against the Current, Hit the Lights, and The Spill Canvas also joined the bill. Doors opened around noon at Club Xtaza for the festival. For the first part of the day there were 2 stages where bands such as Check Engine light, Skashank Redemption, Modern chemistry, and Eternal Boy took the stage and put on great performances for the very energetic crowd.
As the middle of the day approached, all of the music shifted to the one main stage in the venue. The three bands at the top of the bill had the crowd on their feet and singing at the top of their lungs. Hit the Lights, a pop punk band from Lina, Ohio. Seeing them before, their energy never disappoints! They had the crowd jumping and crowd surfing within seconds of them taking the stage. They closed with their most popular song “Bodybag” and everyone in the building was signing along.
Photo by Nicki Jones
Next up was the Spill Canvas, an alt rock band from Sioux Falls, South Dakota that’s been around since 2002. They rocked the crowd with their hits “All Over You” and “Lullaby”, getting the crowd warmed up with their stellar performance! They also teased about them entering the recording studio again very soon!
Photo by Nicki Jones
Finally, at the top of the lineup, was the pop punk band from Tallahassee, Fl: Mayday Parade! This was my fourth time seeing this band headline a show and each time they get better and better. While they were headlining the Four Chord Music Festival, this stop was a part of their “Tales Told By Dead Friends EP” 10 year anniversary tour. They played the whole EP cover to cover and there was not a person in the building not singing their heart out, particularly when they played the hit that started it all “Three Cheers for Five Years”. After playing through the EP, they played a handful of their other hit including “Miserable at Best”, “When You see My Friends”, “Kids in Love” and “Jamie All Over”. They also gave their songs “The Memory” and “The Problem with the Big Picture is that it’s Hard to See” a live debut! Overall, the performance was everything I expected and more!
Photo by Nicki Jones