As a member of the mid 90s post-hardcore/emo scene, Texas is
the Reason have become a highly influential band since their break up in 1996. Though
they were never as big as contemporaries such as Sunny Day Real Estate or Jimmy
Eat World, they still have retained a passionate and hardcore fanbase in their
following years. Their sold out show at London’s Electric Ballroom, is advertised
as their final ever one, so it promises to be a highly engaging evening.
A somewhat dramatic backdrop begins the show, with a playing
of “Do Who Know Who You Are?” before the band walk on to a rapturous welcome
greeting “Back and To the Left”. Their energetic riffs seen on “Blue Boy” and “Johnny
On the Spot” and “If It’s Here When We Back, It’s Ours”, are greeted by an exuberant
crowd, despite the prospect of starting the working week again in a few hours’
time.
Whilst no one can ever be happy at the thought of a band
calling it a day for good, the fact that it is Texas is the Reason’s final show
adds a sense of excitement to the evening. When the night dawns on the band,
the opening chords of their most heartfelt song, perhaps, “A Jack With One Eye”,
is the perfect way to say goodbye, with audience members embracing one another
and sing-along along for one final time. It all gets a bit too much for
frontman Garret Klahn, who can’t hold his tears back following the last note.
Whilst some reunions can’t get tedious, there’s not one note
of cynicism one can detect from this one.
