Alan Day of Four Years Strong headlined the College Union Board’s Friday Feb. 1 show in the Rathskeller.
He performed under his new solo name The Here and Now, and was open ed by Fred Mascherino, lead singer of Terrible Things and The Color Fred, formerly of Taking Back Sunday.Mascherino performed songs from the various bands he has been in, starting his set list with Terrible Things’ “Revolution.”
Even though the songs were from different bands, it was evident that his style heavily influenced each of these songs.Mascherino was especially talented at the guitar, incorporating solos and hitting the instrument when he could.
The audience bobbed their heads and tapped their feet along with the music.
After playing several more songs, such as “Breaking Pangea” and one of his favorites that he has written, “Lullaby,” Mascherino began to take requests from the audience, including Michael Jackson’s “Human Nature” and Queen’s “Under Pressure.”
Next week, Mascherino’s band, Terrible Things, will be touring Philadelphia and New York with rock band Further Seems Forever.
He also has a new EP on vinyl and CD, which he said he played all of the instruments for.
Although he dubbed himself as “the worst stage-banter person ever,” Mascherino managed to keep the audience engaged and laughing throughout the night.Driving in from Boston, Alan Day started off by singing “Broken by You.”
He announced that he will be releasing the rest of his new music under his solo name, The Here and Now, fairly soon.
In addition, Day sang some softer songs, including a cover of The Beatles’ “Blackbird,” but he closed the night with his own song, “Keep Me in Your Heart,” during which he really let his emotions out, belting in anger.
Day did not seem as prepared for his set list as Mascherino was, and by the end of his seemingly short performance, the number of people at the packed Rat dwindled down until the eatery was half-filled.
During his performance, Mascherino said that he and Day would catch up after the show. A couple of years ago, the two toured the U.K. together, and their performance at the Rat was the first time they had seen each other since.
