by Matt Kelchner

2015 marks the 15th year anniversary of the release of The Appleseed Cast’s seminal album, Mare Vitalis. To celebrate, the band teamed up with Graveface Records for a reissue release back in late June. Along with the repressing came a headlining tour in support of such. The Appleseed Cast were joined with Annabel and Adjy for a way sold out and sweaty night last Wednesday night at Johnny Brenda’s.

Those who made their way to the small Fishtown venue were treated with the wonderful sounds of Adjy. Led by Christopher Noyes, the group packed the stage at Johnny Brenda’s and were not afraid to use every inch they had. With constant instrument switching between songs (and sometimes during) Adjy weaved together song after song of moving, complex tunes. Sonically they sat firmly between the likes of The World Is A Beautiful Place And I Am No Longer Afraid To Die and Los Campesinos!. With cheerful gang vocals and strong percussive elements, Adjy proved to be a mighty act to kick things off for the night.

Towards the end of Adjy’s set, the feeling of the night being a sold out concert began to set in. With a packed room, Ohio’s Annabel took to the stage with their straight forward, powering tinge of emo. They used their time to shine a spotlight on their recently released Having It All, an album that will fly under the radar of many and be one of the year’s most underrated records. For a night that was focusing on the past, the first two opening acts gave the crowd a little taste of what’s next in the ever expanding world of emo music.

Walking on stage to a room packed elbow to elbow, The Appleseed Cast arrived showered in cheers. The band wasted little time getting into “The Immortal Soul of Mundo Cani”. Mare Vitalis was played track by track, in the order presented on the album. Screams and shouts came in from all angles as different fan favorites came up. Their set Wednesday night was kept simple, all ten tracks off Mare Vitalis.

When it came to the encore, the four guys seemingly walked right back on stage as soon as they left to perform a pair of songs. First up was their rendition of the Stone Roses’ “I Wanna Be Adored”, followed with “Cathedral Rings” off the Illumination Ritual album. As Christopher Crisci and company walked off stage, the crowd continued to cheer for more. And after a slightly longer pause, the group came out for their true grand finale, “Steps and Numbers”. The Appleseed Cast’s influence can be heard in many younger bands today and Wednesday night they proved once more their place amongst the genre’s greats.