Live review: Samiam and Shades Apart with Crossed Keys live at Crossroads

Garwood, NJ – 8 December 2023

“Your sights and sounds, I’ve been away for too long”

Being from Jersey, I’ve been very blessed that my location has made it rare for a band to come through that I didn’t get a chance to check out. When it takes less than 2 hours to get to New York City, Philly and the Jersey music meccas of New Brunswick and Asbury Park, there’s nary a tour that doesn’t hit close to home. I had that rare first-time experience when I got to check out Samiam. Having first heard them on the Double Exposure compilation in 1998, I was quick to become a fan. Yes, they were already very established at that point, but that was my introduction. Ever since that initial meet-cute we’ve shared a long and distant relationship, one where I constantly find myself singing along at home and never catching them out and about. 

I was ready to finally experience their live show after 25 long years plus ridiculous support acts, Shades Apart (whom I’ve seen before but not in 25 years) and Crossed Keys, a newish band made up of members of some of the most important Philly bands of my youth, notably Kid Dynamite and Zoloff the Rock and Roll Destroyer who just so happened to put out one of the best records of 2023. So I went to Crossroads, an intimate and incomparable venue in New Jersey, known as the stage of choice for folks like Brian Fallon and Frank Turner, ready for an evening a quarter century in the making. It’s not that the performances weren’t worth the wait… it’s just that I’m an asshole for allowing myself to miss out on each of these acts for so long

Speaking of missing out… I was unfamiliar with opener Last Minet, but get ready for me to sing their praises. This 4-piece from Jersey came out in matching blue jumpsuits and Free Palestine pins and put everyone on notice. They were humble, they were enjoying themselves, and they were fucking tight.

Not everyone knew who they were, but everyone quickly found out and quickly invested in their rock sound. “Don’t Hold Back” was a singalong that brought the previously uncertain crowd into the mix. This was the moment you could feel the audience’s enjoyment grow and you could watch the enjoyment etch itself into the quartet’s faces. The precision and timing of their performance was impeccable and the pop-punk with purpose vocals of frontperson Zuri were delightfully catchy and empowering.

“Where Do We Go From Here” inspired the quartet to get matching tattoos in a sign of solidarity, a sign that no matter where the music takes them, Last Minet knows they get there together. I went into this set with minimal expectations but what a great performance from the future of the local scene. Closer, “Now Or Never” proved that the Jersey scene remains in good hands thanks to Last Minet.

The next band was Crossed Keys, and there was a bit of unintentional slapstick as 5 people took the stage better suited for solo bar acts. Right off the bat the Philly quintet was bouncing off of and bumping into one another without missing a single note. And they were fucking loving the tight quarters. I’d be hard pressed to name a band that seemed to genuinely enjoy being on stage together more than this crew. The smiles were genuine, the smiles were huge and the smiles last from start to finish. Ya know how you can hear a band’s break-up coming on certain records? With Crossed Keys’ performance you could feel the members’ love deepening.

The friendship nearly overshadowed a flawless performance… Nearly… but with a live set this good, no level of heartwarming could dull its luster. With a high energy performance that blasted through standout tracks like “Everything Breaks,” “Victim Complex” and “RIP Arch Street” the quintet wasted no time showing off their passion, their personality and their precision. It was a goddammed delight! The Philly supergroup puts on a live experience that celebrates the opportunity to step on stage in their 30s and 40s and continue to hold the dreams so many of us shared in our youth. 

By the time Crossed Keys was ready to close things out on the backs of personal favorites “Saviors” and “Who We Never Were,” the crowd full of aging punks and geriatric millennials were basking in the glow of nostalgia, forgetting we had careers, families and mortgages, forgetting that this much fun was going to hurt in the morning. 

As I mentioned earlier regarding Shades Apart, its been approximately 25 years since I last saw these mainstays of my speakers. That means members of Last Minet likely didn’t exist when I last saw these dudes… and yup that makes me feel old. In those 25 years, I’ve gotten worse at everything, they only seem to have gotten tighter.

The 3-piece weren’t here to eat up each inch of the stage, content to stay mostly static as they performed a medley of brilliant tracks from an illustrious career. Shades Apart split all the eras, keeping fans new and old thrilled with a stronger setlist than those of us in the crowd deserved.

As the three elder statesman of alt-punk in Jersey have aged like a fine wine, still able to put on the type of tight and studio perfect performance they always have, reminding me of why they were always one of my favorite live acts. Closing out with the hits, “Valentine,” “Stranger By The Day” and “Fist” Shades Apart reconfirmed their place in the pantheon of Garden State greats. The crowd energy was at a fever pitch as the trio exited the stage.

Speaking of fevers, Samiam frontman Jason Beebout and bassist Chad Darby announced at the beginning of the set they were quite under the weather. Being my first time seeing them I immediately allowed my misery to convince myself that this was going to suck… turns out though, that Samiam at 80% is better than most bands at 100%. The emocore legends fucking killed my friends. The quintet opened with “80 West” and as my personal favorite, that was good enough for me. 

Between songs Beebout looked to be on death’s doorstep but as soon as the music started he was pure perfection. Maybe the discomfort fed into Samiam’s signature cathartic sound or maybe it was the band’s professionalism. Whatever it was though, I was blown away. The setlist hit hard, wrought with cuts of personal pain and emotional grit. It’s no surprise that after touring for over 30 years, Samiam have their performance down to a science. There was little to no between song banter, and it almost seemed like the band was doing their best to get through their set and off stage in as short a time as possible. That suspicion proved wrong when the band called an audible and played “Mud Hill ” despite it being left off the setlist. 

I’ve no idea why I waited so long to get here, but Samiam was well worth the wait. The four acts to take the stage gave me a sense of reinvigoration, the feeling of combustible energy we all got at hall shows before we turned jaded and gray. It was wonderful being a stowaway for this trip back in time.