US post-hardcore outfit Saosin recently wrapped up their first Australian tour in more than a decade, fronted by original vocalist Anthony Green. But the tour setlists have left some fans with a bad taste in their mouths.
When first announced in November last year, the tour was advertised as featuring “all the hits” and “all the albums.” Press materials promised the band would be playing songs from their 2006 self-titled album and 2009’s In Search of Solid Ground, and classic-era songs like ‘You’re Not Alone’ and ‘Voices.’
Saosin’s Tour Advertising Promised “All the Hits” from “All the Albums”
However, material from the band’s first two albums was almost entirely absent from the tour’s setlists. All five songs from the band’s debut EP, 2003’s Translating the Name, were played, but the sets otherwise focused on the band’s most recent album, 2016’s Along the Shadow. At the band’s Adelaide show on Sunday night (12th March), they performed ‘Voices’ from their 2006 self-titled album.
In recent days, fans have taken to Saosin’s Instagram page to voice their displeasure. Under the band’s most recent post – the tour poster for the Australian shows – there are dozens of comments from fans who attended the shows expecting to hear songs from Saosin and In Search of Solid Ground.
A post featuring the tour poster on the promoter Destroy All Lines’ Instagram account also features multiple comments from unhappy concertgoers, with some labelling the way the tour was marketed as “false advertising.”
One reason for the absence of songs from the band’s self-titled album and In Search of Solid Ground could be that Green doesn’t feature on either album. Green was a founding member of the band but left in 2004 following the release of Translating the Name. He was replaced by Cove Reber, who performed on the band’s first two albums before being asked to leave in 2010.
Green – who formed the band Circa Survive following his exit from Saosin – rejoined the band in 2014. Since then, the band’s setlists have typically been similar to those on the Australian shows, primarily drawing from Translating the Name and Along the Shadow.
However, as fans have pointed out, press materials for the Australian tour explicitly stated material from the band’s first two albums would be played at the shows. Neither Saosin nor Destroy All Lines have publicly responded to the criticism.
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