Live Review: Motion City Soundtrack, Roswell, Hope Street

Walking into a venue shortly after doors open and seeing an already pulsing room for the opening act of the night is surprising these days, but local outfit Hope Street appeared to be revelling in the opportunity. Short, sharp and aggressive, the four-piece have by far the hardest sound of the night; with street punk meeting surging guitar riffs with a pulsing hardcore rhythm, they set a solid early tone. Dropping in their next single, This Is Our Home hits the mark, with stark lyrical content hitting a chanting chorus akin to the Dropkick Murphys' Worker's Song — they cap it all off with Take Blood.

Roswell is a no brainer for the night; between their energy, stage attitude and stacked-on glimmering pop punk, they own the room. The dynamic between vocalist Katt Nelson and bassist Jake Street is both visually and sonically entertaining. It's hard for the pair to contain their excitement over playing with a headline act they hold in such admiration. Roaring through Salsa Shark, Nuremberg and Water Under The Bridges I Burned, Roswell are straight-up infectious and a sure crowd pleaser.

You could guarantee each and every person in attendance has absolutely flogged their copy of Commit This To Memory; ten years on, Motion City Soundtrack deliver it in full. From the opening bars of Attractive Today, the engulfing crowd participation lifts the room, punters locking a friend in arms and leaning back to belt out their favourite lyric. The five members light up the stage with frontman Justin Pierre's falsetto vocals astonishingly impressive and keyboardist Jesse Johnson thrashing about uncontrollably. Trademark single Everything Is Alright begins a slight pogo mosh, but signs that the band are fading begin to creep in. They hit every mark with smiles on their faces, but the initial burst of energy has dissipated in their stance, understandable when you consider they're on the final leg of their Australian tour and in the middle of a world tour. It hardly dampens the performance with witty banter, discussions of wizards and an impromptu Tom Petty cover commanding applause all around. After wrapping up the retrospective in Hold Me Down, the preview of fresh tracks begins in TKO. Synth-heavy and walloping drum lines, the pop lifts are a sweet preview of the album to come before 2003's My Favorite Accident strikes the final chord with fists in the air seeing off the sweaty Minnesotans from our shores.