Gramercy Theatre (New York City, NY)
03/02/23
It’s the opening night of Meet Me @ The Altar’s first headlining tour. No one’s on stage just yet, but the crowd is going crazy to the band’s curated pre-show playlist of 2000s flashback bops and pop hits. It sets the perfect tone for the show to come, an electrifying blend of current pop-punk prowess and reimagined nostalgia for the music of the band’s childhoods. Hearing their sound live, it makes perfect sense why Meet Me @ The Altar titled their new album Past // Present // Future. Meet Me @ The Altar formed through internet friendships powerful enough to bring vocalist Edith, guitarist and bassist Téa, and drummer Ada together. In a scene dominated by men, they bring some much needed girl power to the front, flaunting a safe space for the girls, gays, and theys. You can absolutely feel that they practice what they preach, as the crowd is filled with a diverse array of smiling, moshing, and crowd surfing faces.
The show opens with the band’s hit single, “Say It (To My Face),” which you may recognize from a Taco Bell ad! It’s a high energy tune with music that begs you to jump and a message that gets you to scream. It calls out to any bit of energy in your system and gets you moving. Illuminated by neon lights, the crowd went hard to this popular opening track. Edith, Téa, and Ada match the energy; you would never know that this is the first night of the tour. They all command the stage with a powerful yet welcoming presence. Sure, you’re a fan of theirs in the audience, but you’re also all just here together to jam out. This is abundantly clear in the way Edith, Téa, and Ada talk to the audience between songs. They bring you to their level, taking you behind the scenes of the setlist. They compliment this new single with one of their older hits, “Beyond My Control,” giving fans who have been around for years a memory of the beginning. It’s a powerful ballad with a chorus to scream along to. Adding to that feeling of being part of the in-crowd, Meet Me @ The Altar bless the audience with a sneak peek of some of the songs off their new album, which hadn’t been released at the time of the show. We get to hear some remarkable tracks off of the new album including the live debuts of ‘‘A Few Tomorrows” and “Same Language.”
As the show hits its halfway point, the band comes front and center to play acoustic for the audience. We hear their 2021 hit, “Feel A Thing,” as a reimagined stripped down track, with Ada setting the tone on the cajón and Téa guiding the melody on the acoustic guitar. To bring even more fun into the show, the trio does a cover medley of each of their favorite songs: “You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette, “Complicated” by Avril Lavigne, and “Take Me Away” by Christina Vidal from Freaky Friday. The back end of the show continues with impeccable energy, casual chats, and amazing musical talent. It’s so impressive to see that Meet Me @ The Altar has maintained the audience’s attention at 100% for the entire show. Nobody in the crowd looks tired, they’ve all been energized by the inescapable urge to move their feet to the band’s music. It’s a catharsis in a tracklist. A demand to have fun. A spark of joy that stays with you. The show closes with an encore of “Kool,” their most recent single, with Edith slaying some of the most impressive vocals in her career so far.
Meet Me @ The Altar delivered an opening night that exceeded all of my expectations, and they were high to begin with. When I first saw the band live, it was in a room of twenty people with no barricade. It didn’t matter, though; they still served up that same high level energy and fun to a small room that I saw tonight in New York City to a sold out crowd. This band is absolutely going places as they absolutely should. They have such a charming personality, messages that resonate, and the musical talent to back it all up. A band’s music can be great, but I truly believe it’s how their live shows stand up to the recordings that determines their potential. Meet Me @ The Altar stands all the way up and more. If you haven’t listened to the album by now… You’re missing out. And if you can catch them on tour or at one of their upcoming festival appearances, they are a can’t miss act.
