The anticipation was palpable as people lined Rideau Street on Sept. 9 to see Philadelphian band Modern Baseball play at Mavericks.
The opening bands warmed up the crowd, but Modern Baseball were really what got them going. Eager fans sang along to their set, and stage divers really let loose.
They released their debut album, Sports, in 2012 and their follow-up, You’re Gonna Miss It All, in February 2014.
Guitarists/vocalists/songwriters Brendan Lukens and Jake Ewald said they met in Maryland, and began to play music together in order to write the kind of music they liked. The two attended the same college in Philadelphia where they met bassist Ian Farmer and drummer Sean Huber.
According to Lukens they are influenced by bands like Say Anything and Motion City Soundtrack. Lukens said they strive to make music with that same openness but with their own spin on the songwriting.
Modern Baseball are often described as emo, and get lumped into many genres but they said it doesn’t faze them. “It’s just cool that so many people recognize our band.”
Lukens said there was never a conscious decision to sound more mature on their sophomore album, but the band knew it was coming with how rapidly their lives were changing. They also focused more on the technical elements during their recording process, Lukens said.
“This is just us doing us,” he said.
“We appreciated that people liked our music and we were really proud of You’re Gonna Miss It All just as we were with Sports but we felt like we stepped up our game with You’re Gonna Miss It All.”
The band said they like to control their music, recording and producing their own albums and making sure they can play all their songs live. They said “@chl03k” is the only song they don’t play live.
Lukens’ own favourite songs are the ones Ewald writes.
“Jake’s just great,” he said.
“I think we want our fans to take away what they want to take away from it. We try to be a very tight live band. We really like when people come up to us and say ‘You guys sounded really good. The energy is there.’ That keeps us going,” Lukens said.
Audience member Sam Diguer loved the show.
“They change it up a bit,” Diguer said .”They made it way better. They’re great entertainers. I think it would make people want to come out to shows.”
Hannah Mart agreed.
“They are so good live. They really got the crowd going,” she said. “I love it when everybody’s having a good time. You can clearly see they’re having a good time on stage. You can see the people watching them having a good time. The interaction is so cool.”
The band’s members are familiar with trying to balance school and music. Lukens advised it’s best to keep your school involved and plan carefully.
“And tell your parents!” he said.
“Jake and I have always been constantly writing so it’s just a steady thing,” Lukens said of their future plans. “We’re going to sit on You’re Gonna Miss It All for a minute. Love the songs. Take it in. When it happens, it happens.”
