Despite the thirty minute wait in the rain to get into the venue and the long, sweaty waits between bands, the 2014 Winter Meltdown concert was an entertaining night. The bands all seemed excited to be on the stage and the crowd returned the energy in their dancing and shouting. With Banks, Bleachers, Haim, Neon Trees, and Rise Against attracting a crowd of diverse individuals, it was fun seeing them all talk so passionately about their most anticipated band of the night.

The wait before the concert was filled with remixes of radio hits, which for this type of concert seemed a bit odd, but it was fun nonetheless. The lights dimmed and the concert’s hosts came out on stage to introduce the first act, Banks. She was the only solo artist and her music was a nice warm up with the low tones playing with her sultry vocals. Her appearance was all black, and her music was filled with an organ sloshing bass. Her own vocals were drowned out by the bass and the backup vocals, but her charisma made her entertaining to watch and the crowd was undeniably grooving. There were a few mutters of relief when she left the stage, but that was to be expected when there is a group as diverse in music taste as there was that night.

Bleachers was next, the new radio hit band from New Jersey. I felt as if I was meant to be at a dance in an 80s movie and I loved it. The lead singer was a bit aggressive, shouting at the crowd to cheer. When the beginning chords of their main hit “I Wanna Get Better” played, the crowd erupted into cheers and dances I had yet to see. By the end of the set, both the band and the pit of people were drenched in sweat. It is an unexplainable, “you had to have been there” feeling to be so happy with multiple peoples’ sweat on me, but it’s when I knew that the night was going to be good.

The sister band, Haim, from LA ran on stage after another long, cramped wait. Their more indie pop rock genre was a welcomed change for me. This was a band I knew, and I was over the moon to hear that their live performance is just as amazing as their studio versions. With the most theatrical faces I have ever seen during a concert a few jokes were passed in the crowd, but there wasn’t a single person around me that said they didn’t enjoy the music, and that’s what we were there for.

They connected with the crowd by “inviting” us into their world of jamming, and for five or so minutes the venue was filled with amazing guitar solos and random vocals. They also ended their show with their own version of the production Stomp. Each sister had a drum and their own rhythm and it was one of the coolest things I have seen. Haim put so much into their performance and the crowd gave so much back that by the time they thanked us and left the stage everyone was out of breath. Personally I was a left a little breathless from the fact that I just rocked out with one of my favorite bands.

Following my own favorite act was Neon Trees with an hour long set and an anticipated dance party. This is the band that most of the people came to see, and I understood why when I couldn’t help but dance around and fall in love with the lead singer’s own dancing and attitude. He brought an energy to the stage that gave us all the second wind of energy that we needed. The band’s sound was true to studio, which is always an awesome thing to hear.

Lastly, Rise Against played their hour long set. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to stay for their set due to the ever growing intensity of the crowd around me. There’s no doubt in my mind that the fans showed their dedication with every shouted word and every fist in the air as the band that they endured the night for was finally performing.

Overlooking the animosity of some of the concert goers around me and the way my clothes smelled of rain and sweat before I got them in the wash, it was a great night to spend with friends. 96X put on a really fun concert and I anticipate next year’s line up.