On Tuesday, June 18, Tigers Jaw will be playing their last Virginia show ever at The Camel. Back in March, the emo/indie rock band from Scranton, Pennsylvania announced that three of its members were quitting the band. However, instead of spontaneously disappearing from the scene, the remaining band members are opting to give fans a proper farewell. Despite the mass exodus of members, keyboardist Brianna Collins said on the band’s Tumblr that the band would still be doing their full US tour they booked for the summer, though they'd have to cancel most of the dates in Europe that had already been announced earlier in the year.
Collins indicated that the tour would be completed by a lineup including herself and guitarist Ben Walsh, along with "the help of some talented friends" (who, at least at their Bled Fest date earlier on the tour, took the form of Balance And Composure bassist and drummer Matt Warner and Bailey Van Ellis). But it seems the band will be calling it quits after this summer, with Collins saying, “These are likely to be the last Tigers Jaw tours for the foreseeable future.”
For anyone who’s a fan of Tigers Jaw, the news of this potential break up has been just as heartbreaking as their music can be. Tigers Jaw's songs are infectious, incredibly catchy, and memorable after just one listen. The band's vocal melodies and harmonies, split between Walsh, Collins, and now-departed guitarist Adam McIlwee, are particularly noteworthy. Their emotionally-driven songwriting grooves like some older midwest emo bands such as The Promise Ring, and despite fitting into such a specific niche in the punk rock scene, the band still writes some incredibly great pop songs that could capture almost anyone’s attention.
Tigers Jaw has enjoyed a pretty successful career so far, having released three full length albums, the most recent being 2010's Two Worlds. The band has also put out a whole slew of EPs and splits with bands such as Balance and Composure and Tiny Empires, and their most recent release is a four-way split with Self Defense Family, Code Orange Kids, and The World Is A Beautiful Place and I’m No Longer Afraid To Die, which just came out in April on Run For Cover Records.
The show at The Camel on Tuesday will probably be the last chance local fans get to see Tigers Jaw perform live, so attendance is highly encouraged. Tigers Jaw has been on tour with Baltimore emotional hardcore band Pianos Become The Teeth and LA emo band Dad Punchers, who feature members of Touche Amore. Both of these groups will join them at The Camel, as will fellow Scrantonites Captain, We're Sinking. Doors open at 7 PM. Admission is $10 in advance, $12 at the door, and advance tickets can be ordered here: http://tigersjawrva.eventbrite.com/ For more information on this event, click here.