THE HIGHER AT THE SAINT IN ASBURY PARK
The New Jersey concert scene had a very busy Friday night this past weekend. Four Year Strong had their show out at the Asbury Lanes and Nickelback found themselves at Starland Ballroom. In addition to these, The Higher also made their stop in New Jersey, performing at The Saint in Asbury Park. This was an easy decision for me - no doubt in my mind I would be at The Higher’s show. Originally scheduled to be at House of Independents in Asbury Park, the show was moved to The Saint, a much more intimate venue. For me personally, this made the show even better - the atmosphere was perfect. With support from Bad Luck, The Ghost Club, and Little Hag, fans were in for a killer night.
I had never seen/heard of any of the three openers, so I was curious for how the night would go. Truth be told, I don’t know if I’ve ever been this impressed with openers I was unfamiliar with. First up were Brooklyn natives, Bad Luck. They started the night off strong with their catchy songs and slightly dry humor. The crowd bopped along as they played through their set.
Taking the stage after were The Ghost Club. Their larger than life energy really had people moving, and I could see there were some fans in the crowd even singing along. At one point, vocalist Domenic Dunegan jumped up onto the bartop to perform the end of one of their songs.
Taking the stage as the last opener were Asbury natives, Little Hag. By this point the venue had become quite crowded and you could tell there were many fans of the band anticipating their performance. Their set was captivating and it was fun to watch them utilize the small stage in whatever ways they could. Their performance was enjoyable and they’re definitely a band I want to see more from in the future.
When it was finally time for The Higher to take the stage, I was internally buzzing. The Higher was a band I absolutely adored in high school and I never had the opportunity to catch them live. Many of their songs are still a staple on my playlists that I use. Hearing that they were making their comeback sent me into a tizzy, and I was even more excited when this show was announced. After a long 13 years, I was finally getting to see them live, and when that realization hit I couldn’t contain my excitement. Their setlist was everything I could’ve asked for and more. Throughout the night they played tracks such as “Weapons Wired”, “31 Floors”, and “Histrionics”. They recently dropped a new EP Elvis in Wonderland back in October, and included the tracks “Free Ride” and “Elvis in Wonderland” in their set as well. Their sound was impeccable to what they sound like on their recordings, and they brought an energy to their live performance that really brought the tracks to life. As the set neared the end, fans jammed out to a classic from their discography, “Insurance”, before they closed out their set with one of my personal favorites, “Pace Yourself”. Even though the night went quite late, there was such a palpable energy in the room by the end.
This tour just came to a close, but I’m sure there will be future opportunities to catch The Higher live, and I’d absolutely recommend making it out to a show for them if you can. I cannot wait to see where the band goes from here!
Nicole DiBenedetto is a photographer based out of New Jersey. She likes making new friends and meeting new people so catch her out in the pit and say hi!