Rise Against @ Agora (10/20/24)
A Sunday evening in Cleveland was spent perfectly for a sold out Agora Theatre this weekend. An evening that brought us music from, Spiritual Cramp, Microwave, and Rise Against. Spiritual Cramp is a punk band out of California that formed in 2017. I only caught the tail end of their set, but from what I saw the crowd ate up every word lead singer Michael Bingham had to offer. Microwave is a rock band from Georgia that I had the pleasure of covering earlier this year at The Roxy in Lakewood. Their set was amazing then, and Sunday's performance was no different. Microwave was only on Rise Against's tour for three nights, but they were a great balancing agent to the roster for the evening.
Forming in 1999, Rise Against has been around long enough to become a household name for most people over 25. Their fanbase is very loyal, which was demonstrated for me this weekend with sold out attendance, and fans screaming the lyrics to everything they played. Rise Against isn't touring to promote an album, their lead singer Tim McIlrath stated that "they just like to come around to give the fans what they want to hear", and that they did. Starting the set Rise Against played hit "Satellite", then
"Injection", followed by "Worth Dying For". They played songs from throughout their 9 studio album discography, including a few acoustic songs. The stage design was simple, but effective, with a black backdrop that read "RISE" and smoke machines giving emphasis to high emotional swells. Half way through the set, lead singer Tim urged the crowd to go out and vote in a few weeks. He said he won't tell you who to vote for, but that he will be voting with women and queer rights in mind. This mirrors the activism that makes up a lot of the band's lyrics. Rise Against gives a very quality live performance and I hope to see them again the next time they come through town. Their tour has just begun, so be sure to catch them in a city near you soon!
Photos by Shelly Duncan
Microwave
Rise Against
