Maxwell’s was packed to capacity Saturday night as fans anxiously waited for Fifteen Fleeting to take the stage. With many in attendance sporting 15 F t-shirts and glow stick sunglasses, the room lit up in a distinct green and yellow blaze.
“If you have glasses, put them on. It enhances your vision – Fifteen Fleeting vision,” said frontman Vinny Belcastro.
With a driving drum beat and soaring guitar and vocals, the band had the entire room clapping along to set opener “Streetlamp Limelight.” As the song ended, Belcastro waved his arms in the air, asking for more applause.
“Hoboken, let me know you’re alive out there,” he screamed. The animated frontman continued to grab concertgoers’ attention with his high energy and strong stage presence throughout their nearly 90-minute set.
“We basically gave birth to a child,” Belcastro continued. “This child is called :Presents: and we want you to all go home with a copy and play it in your car and for your friends,” he said of the band’s first full-length release.
A solid mix of old a new, the Hoboken-based band debuted many tracks off their new album as well as their last release, Signals From an Empty Room. While their older material received the most screams, that didn’t deter fans from singing along word for word during the tracks off :Presents:.
Songs like “The Only” impressed with soaring guitar and keyboard accompaniment, providing a distinct atmospheric landscape. Easily pictured in an arena setting, Fifteen Fleeting's musical textures blended well with Belcastro’s captivating vocals. Within the course of the song, Fifteen Fleeting transformed the music from a soft ballad to a rock infused number.
A diverse set, Fifteen Fleeting switched gears from a fast-paced rock number with striking guitar riffs to a more stripped down approach effortlessly. Tracks like “Oblivion” showcased a new side to the band. After he asked the room to clap along, Belcastro made the track his own with a quicker singing style than heard previously while “American Dream” continued to pick up the pace with a pounding drum beat and more soulful vocals.
No doubt a powerhouse set, fans screamed for “One more song” when it came time for Fifteen Fleeting to end the night. Lucky concertgoers got four more songs before the band closed their performance shortly before midnight.
The atmospheric “Brace” kicked off their encore set complete with guitar fuzz and a driving drum beat as Belcastro’s voice reverberated throughout the venue. “Bright” followed suit with a fierce electric guitar interlude as fans raised their hands in the air.
“Did you pick up a copy of our album?” Belcastro asked the crowd. “That’s our child, take good care of it,” he requested before ending the night with a stand-out cover of the Beatles’ “Come Together.”
Appreciative of their fan base, the band continually thanked the crowd and radio station 101.9 WRXP for being there since the beginning. In December, Fifteen Fleeting won a contest to be WRXP’s house band and opened up for fellow Jersey rockers My Chemical Romance and The Gaslight Anthem at New York’s Roseland Ballroom. If their show Saturday is any indication of their talent, New Jersey can add Fifteen Fleeting to its list of impressive rock bands.
