When I heard Comeback Kid was coming to Bangkok, I was completely flabbergasted.
Here’s some context: I grew up in western Canada, from which this hardcore band also happens to hail. I was 16-years-old the first time I saw Comeback Kid play, at the farewell show for their original frontman. I took an eight-hour road trip with some friends to the next province in order to see the show and I didn’t tell my parents, because I knew they wouldn’t let me go. So, I left a note and snuck out in the middle of the night because there was no way I could miss this band.
Since then, Comeback Kid’s guitarist has become its lead singer, and the band has released three more albums. A lot has changed in my life too… I live in Bangkok. Also, I haven’t listened to much of their new stuff, so I was a little wary.
Likewise, I’d never been to a hardcore show in Bangkok and I wasn’t sure what to expect from the crowd. You walk into some nightclubs here and everyone looks bored to death. I’m used to the high-energy basement gigs back home, with a big mosh pit and kids throwing elbows all over the place.
So when Comeback Kid took the stage, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But then, the first chords of “False Idols Fall” rang out and the crowd went crazy. We’re talking pushing, shoving and a LOT of crowd-surfing.
The majority of the audience was Thai, and they knew the words to every song. Frontman Andrew Neufeld was getting everyone amped. A piece of equipment even broke thanks to the ruckus, which is always a sign of a good rock show.
During the show, Neufeld asked where everyone was from, and it turns out there were quite a few Europeans and just a handful of Canadians, Americans and Aussies in attendance. I was completely shocked to find out that hardcore music had this type of international following.
It was also my first time at the Rock Pub (just off of Ratchathewi BTS Station), which is hosting a great many indie rock concerts in the coming months, pulling in headliners like Sum 41 and Paramore. This venue is a breath of fresh air in the Bangkok scene. It also has rock and heavy metal cover bands during the week, which sounds like a lot of hilarity to me.
This was Comeback Kid’s first performance in Bangkok and I have a feeling the group will be back again after such a warm welcome. My only qualm was the ticket price, which was 800 baht. This is actually close to what I have paid to see the band play in Canada, so I felt it was high by Thai standards. While Comeback Kid played very well, the band’s set was only about an hour long and there was no opening act.
At the end of the show, all the Thais piled up on stage to take a photo with the band. I think they were satisfied. For me – what can I say? It was cool to see a band I loved as a teenager now that I’m an adult, and it was fantastic to see them in an entirely different place, surrounding by an entirely different culture.
