???On a brisk Tuesday night, fans of retro-rock strapped into their DeLoreans, floored the gas and quickly accelerated to 88, cruising to the Town Ballroom in a fashion geared specifically towards the early '80s glam-rock scene.
???With more hairspray than a Motley Cr??e show, there was no doubt about what type of music headlining quartet, Escape the Fate, would serenade the crowd with.
???Originally from Las Vegas, Escape The Fate came out to screams from a front row of high school jailbait.
???Shocking no one, the band's first and arguably biggest hit "Situations" is all about the bump and grind of drug use and promiscuity that were met with cheers and accompaniment from kids far too young to sing about such vices.
???New singer Craig Mabbitt, formerly of blessthefall, has noticeably brought a new attitude to Escape The Fate. A band once known for its edgy and scream-friendly nature, Escape The Fate appeared to be a castrated form of its previous self, more concerned with impressing a feminine crowd than with making good music.
???As the pre-teen girls in attendance screamed along with poorly written songs like "Something" and "The Flood," Mabbitt reveled in the undeserved attention while his band stunk up the stage.
???The main support for the night was William Control. The dark minds behind the electronic goth dance mix that attempted to make the crowd move were William Francis and Nick Wiggins from Victory act Aiden. Although they put on a decent show full of emotion and BDSM, the metalheads seemed to be too macho for William Control's experimentalism.
???Pre-Control was Black Tide, who inarguably put on the best show of the night and brought old-fashioned metal to the Ballroom. Displaying face-melting guitar solos and insane drum work, Black Tide sent a "Shockwave" throughout the venue and sounded like a band that has been around for ages.
???The truth is that main singer/guitarist Gabriel Garcia is only 16 years old, and his co-guitarist Austin Diaz is 18. The guitar solos that these two were producing were better than most people twice their age can play.
???When a band has that much talent and exposure with members that young, it usually leads to good things. If Black Tide can keep producing this kind of music, the only place for them to go is up.
???Though the support was strong in some cases, while in others odd and darkly sexual, the bad taste Escape The Fate left in many a mouths isn't easily forgettable, let alone worthy of the admission fee.
