Stephanie Connell: story and photos

It’s a quiet night in Millvale, just like any other night.  Cars happily bustle up and down the narrow streets, and a line forms outside Mr. Small’s Theatre and Funhouse.  Teens and young adults alike eagerly wait for the doors to open.  Around 7 pm the venue welcomes its guests inside the former church to enjoy a sanctuary of a different kind: music.  A DJ opened the show with a series of classic 1980s jams, such as “Livin’ on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi and Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.”  At 8pm, Greensburg’s own Vertigo continued on with its pop-rock funk styles, followed by Skylar Stecker who is on the full tour.  Not long after she finished, the lights dimmed and the crowd roared.  Four musicians take the stage, the lead singer Jedi-style (slowly, hood-up).  During the opening song, Astoria.  The hood is removed to reveal Marianas Trench’s Josh Ramsay.  The first few songs end with Ramsay very happily exclaiming “I told you we would be back soon!”  Ramsay then happily discussed the excitement of the band touring for close to a full year since the beginning of the first Astoria tour. The Canadian pop-punk band played hits such as “Fallout” and “Cross My Heart” as well as hits from Astoria such as “Who Do You Love”.  The band revealed that upon the tour’s end, they would be making a music video for the latter.  They ended the show with the statement “We will back soon!”  Hopefully, we can count on this.

Overall, the band puts on a memorable show.  The theatrics at the beginning of their set create an atmosphere that live music fan can enjoy.  Their crowd interaction only makes it better.  The band saw some familiar faces in the crowd, including a fan who strongly resembles Dean Back of Theory of a Deadman.  “I know we talked about this the last time we came here!” Ramsay exclaimed to the crowd.  Apparently, their concerts in Millvale are just as memorable for the band as they are for the fans.  This was only the band’s second trip to Millvale.  Hopefully, they do not think twice about returning a third time.

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