Don't You Know, That We Love Reunion Shows?

or do we? Reunion shows are definitely a hit or miss for me. It doesn't matter whether it's an artist/band decided to play only a few shows, do a few tours here and there, or even permanently get back together and write new music. The phenomenon of reunion shows is definitely an interesting one. Most bands that have done reunions in the past attracted bigger size of crowd compared to when they were still around.

There are so many great bands that have done reunion shows in the past few years alone. Bands that I didn’t think I’d get a chance to see. I’ll be the first to admit that a little part of me died every time I heard some bands I like doing reunion shows. Why? two reasons. First, because unfortunately as a south east asianer I will just have to settle for youtube videos instead of experiencing the real thing.

The second reason is that in my opinion most reunions suck. Sure, there are always exceptions. But most of the time it’s just a bunch of old dudes and gals trying to relive their “glory days” or make a quick bucks. I believe that most good bands (yes I realize how subjective this is) that have come out in the past were products of their environment. Their music, their messages, and their attitudes are reaction to what was happening at the time and therefore making them most relevant to those time periods. I mean, didn’t you feel awkward for the Sex Pistols when they decided to show up on tv in 2008? or when a straight edge band sing about things they don't mean anymore? Come the fuck on.

Let’s get to the very few cases where I think reunions are justifiable. On top off my head , the showcase of Burning Fight, a book dedicated to 90’s hardcore scene is one of them. It’s only fitting that bands who were involved in the 90's scene such as Unbroken, Undertow, Swing Kids, and many more made appearances at those shows. Those shows were a huge success from what i've heard.

Now, i've been to a few reunion shows myself. so i'm not just talking out of my ass. The problem i have with those shows is that they didn’t really leave an impression on me. I went to those shows expecting to see something great, but I really didn’t get anything out of them (The Saints, Jesus and The Mary Chain, don’t even get me started on Flipper). However, i feel the need to exclude Dinosaur Jr from this category. Dinosaur Jr kicked so much ass when I saw them. It was one of the loudest shows I’ve ever been to. It's almost as if they never broke up in the first place

All jealousy and suspicions aside, there are a few reunion shows from the last few years that I wouldn’t mind seeing. Rorschach, From Ashes Rise, Sunny Day Real Estate, Amebix, The Get Up Kids, etc etc. Did you hear about those Cap’n’Jazz shows? Insanity!!!