The supergroup performed for the first time to a roaring crowd
Comprising Anthony Green (Circa Survive), Frank Iero (My Chemical Romance), Tucker Rule (Thursday), Tim Payne (Thursday) and Travis Stever (Coheed & Cambria), L.S. Dunes is a supergroup that takes that term to a new level entirely. Merging pop-punk and hardcore, L.S. Dunes made their live debut at Riot Fest on Sept. 16.
For having an early set — 1 p.m. precisely — and only one single, “Permanent Rebellion,” the band brought in an impressively large crowd. Green even joked about himself, saying that “this sets the record for the most people seeing one of my band’s first shows.”
The band ripped into their set with “Bombsquad,” a track from their upcoming album “Past Lives,” releasing Nov. 11. Like all bands he’s a part of, Green’s energetic performance drove the set, while Iero and Stever’s subtle guitar harmonies provided a grounding during this chaotic song. “Like Forever” showcased Green’s ability to involve the crowd, though only one single was released as of the time of the performance. Halfway through the song, he jumped off the stage and began to sing directly to those on the barrier, stealing someone’s pink birthday tiara in the process.
Next came the upcoming album’s title track, “Past Lives,” with its dancey bassline and powerful drum intro. Particularly a fan favorite, this song saw Iero take backing vocals, exhibiting just how much his voice has matured over the years from his solo bands. Between songs, Green joked with fans about wanting a funnel cake and that if anyone crowdsurfed it onto the stage, they would get a free hug from Iero much to his horror.
“I want to kill time like it doesn’t matter,” are the echoing lyrics prevalent throughout “Grey Veins. This “love song for lost souls” questions love with Green vocalizing that he wishes people wouldn’t act like they cared when they really don’t. Afterwards, Green parodied the intro to My Chemical Romance’s “Vampire Money,” asking each member how they were feeling before beginning the next song. Funnily enough, Iero was scheduled to close the sold-out festival with MCR later that evening.
The crowd screamed along to “Permanent Rebellion,” their first single which dropped last month. Crowdsurfer after crowdsurfer kept security busy during this song, and was only heightened when Green again jumped off stage and propelled himself into the audience, tumbling and rolling above everyone’s heads.
Before the final song, Green sang a snippet of “I Will Always Love You” in falsetto and joked “that’s the one you all don’t know” when the audience failed to sing along. Opting to stay on the ground by the barrier, Green prefaced the final song, “2022,” with “this is the most fucked up song I ever wrote. It’s about learning how to get through shit, so you don’t want to kill yourself everyday.” Heads nodded along to the sentiment as it rang true for so many people in attendance. Heart-wrenchingly beautiful, “2022” is an anthem about surviving despite everything thrown against you with its candid lyrics of “If I can’t make it ‘til 2022, least we’ll see how long I can swim.” After their Riot Fest performance, “2022” was released as their second single. Green said the song is about surviving an overdose attempt and struggling to communicate the pain he was in to his loved ones.
L.S. Dunes played for less than 30 minutes, and in that very short amount of time proved themselves to be at the forefront of punk-rock’s evolution. Everything worked like clockwork for this supergroup with combined decades and decades of musical experience. But above all, L.S. Dunes is just five long-time friends getting together to make music and have a great time.
“Past Lives” releases on Nov. 11. Check back later on this fall for an interview with the band.
