 | | Saosin |
On their debut album, Saosin set the bar, seemingly, unattainably high; Cove Reber’s vocals hitting a magnificent, powerful falsetto that one would expect to be far too complex to replicate night after night. So it was only appropriate to approach with lowered expectations. In a sense, the low expectations were met. Reber certainly does struggle with some of the more ambitious vocal parts, often opting to let the crowd handle them, such as on upcoming single, Voices. Ironically, it is on Saosin’s older material, from when Anthony Green was vocalist that Reber truly excels. Tracks like Seven Years and crowd favourite They Perched On Stilts are delivered with the intensity and vocal prowess they deserve. There’s no denying it; based on tonight’s performance, there’s little doubt that in recording Saosin, Reber‘s self-imposed mandate was to distance himself from Green’s legacy, resulting in vocals too demanding for the stage. Away from the microphone, there was a real sense of community. The band interacted with the crowd at every opportunity, be it apologizing for the absence of guitarist Beau Burchell from the stage due to his catching of Reber’s recent stomach ailments or simply inserting a song into the set through demand from the audience which they hadn’t played in two years – a perfectly good I Can Tell. A fan couldn’t have asked for more from the set, which represented all chapters in the band’s troubled history to date or the energy the band put into the songs. Once Reber manages to fully move out of Anthony Green’s shadow and into the truly great frontman he appears capable of becoming, Saosin could well be Arena material by the time the next album rolls around. | 
