The Fort Collins music scene has always had a soft spot for indie rock groups. This made it no surprise that the Aggie Theatre had a line down the block before doors even opened. Before anyone took the stage, you could hear conversations about how excited people were about these new albums, the last time they saw these bands before they got popular, or how interested they were to see the band with a new lineup. All these conversations came to a halt as Friendship took the stage. This 4 piece group is made up of Dan Wriggins, Michael Cormier-O’Leary, Jon Samuels, and Peter Gill. The songwriting on their latest album features contemplation mixed with humor. These qualities came across as they played to an eager audience. Their song “St. Bonaventure” particularly struck me with its country inspired sound and lyricism about the challenges of living in the moment.
After Friendship’s set came to an end, the audience’s excitement grew in anticipation of Karly Hartzman, frontwoman of Wednesday, taking the stage. “Bleeds” is the group’s first release since announcing the departure of MJ Lenderman from the live band. This announcement came after Hartzman and Lenderman’s breakup, leaving much room for speculation of possible drama and resentment. These rumors were quickly put to bed as all parties announced the split ultimately came from scheduling issues since Lenderman was touring with his solo music and his band The Wind. Additionally, the fact that Lenderman still recorded in studio for the album, and frequently tours with Wriggins of Friendship indicated peace among all involved. Between sets, the crew began adorning the stage with dolls and stuffed animals. This imagery plays into the “Bleeds” album cover art of an illustrated creature that looks like it came straight out of a children’s book.
As Wednesday took the stage, you could feel a focus in the room, nobody could take their eyes away from Hartzman and her guitar decorated with buttons. They started the set with the album’s opening track “Reality TV Argument Bleeds”, setting the tone for the pensive nature of the album. They continued to move through their setlist while announcing some songs’ backstories every now and then. We got insight into the lore behind “Gary’s II” being about a friendly landlord, “Townies” being based on the people of Greensborough, North Carolina, and a fan in Oakland shaving their head to convince the band to add a song to the setlist that they hadn’t yet practiced. They also played the song “Phish Pepsi”, a tune with a more jaunty sound poking fun at the jam band being mentioned in the title. Hartzman also took an opportunity to encourage the audience to save their moshing energy until the end of the show for their more aggressive tracks. She also stressed that the band does not come back for an encore, so the final few songs were the last opportunity to leave it all on the floor. These last songs included “Bull Believer” from the group’s 2023 album “Rat Saw God”. This song is an 8-minute chronicle of the pain that comes with witnessing someone you care for become a victim of their vices. The song then shifts into anger, expressing resentment at this person as Hartzman screams “finish him” over and over, a reference to the game Mortal Kombat that is mentioned earlier in the song. Before the song began, Hartzman invited the audience to scream with her. At the end of the track this offer was certainly taken up as the voices filled the room while the song crescendoed. The final song the band played was “Wasp”, the closing track of their latest album. This track is short in length but powerful in sound, the crowd took the opportunity to mosh one last time and the band left the stage, leaving the audience electrified.
